Heart and Soul
by Jenny-loves-Amyyy9
Summary: Roderich was a normal school teacher with a simple wish- - -to have someone to love. Is he desperate enough to keep a mecha that was ordered online...even if the order was screwed up?
1. Chapter 1

"Welcome home, Roderich!" Roderich Edelstein, a twenty-four year old high school teacher, froze in his doorway at the unexpected greeting. Standing before him, arms spread wide in greeting, was a pale, silver-haired, red-eyed male. He was dressed in baggy jeans, and a black long-sleeve shirt that read "Evanescence" down his left arm. He had a wide smile on his face, and he clearly expected something from Roderich.

Roderich slammed the door shut in his face.

Three to four business days earlier...

Roderich placed his face on the palm of his hand, staring almost blankly at the screen before him. The computer page was scrolling down as his violet eyes checked the summary for each website, until an ad caught his attention and he froze, staring at it.

_**"ARE YOU TIRED OF BEING ALONE EVERYDAY? FED UP WITH NOT HAVING SOMEONE TO COME HOME TO?"**_

Intrigued slightly, Roderich clicked on the ad. A bright webpage came up, with various images of couples appeared.

_**"ORDER A PERSONALIZED MECHA-BEING TODAY!"**_ Roderich flushed lightly when he realized exactly _what_ kind of thing he pulled up, then harder as he continued reading and the site promised a mecha that would do anything, from simple household chores to...more, ah, _personal_ objectives.

Roderich stayed on the site, though, flushed heavily even as he thought over purchasing the mecha. It had been a long time since he had a companion, he mused, far too long...

With a frustrated sound, Roderich shut the page down and crossed his arms. No matter what, he would _not_ sink down so low as to buy a mecha, of all things, for company. He absolutely, positively _refused_.

Just because his last and only relationship was in junior high, and it only lasted a month and a half before she left (her name was Elizabeta, and she had to return to her home country of Hungary for family reasons) does not mean he was desperate enough to buy a mecha. Not in any way, shape, or form. He _was not _desperate enough to order a mecha he could program to do as he wished, who would stay with him no matter what- - -

With a sigh, Roderich re-opened the window.

Present time

"What the hell?" Roderich hissed from the other side of his front door. Inside his apartment, he could hear the mecha moving around, calling his name with a curious tone. Roderich breathed inwards, collecting himself and preparing to open the door again.

The door opened before he could, making him stumble forward and cry out in surprise. Arms wrapped around his waist to keep him from falling.

"Careful, Roddy." The mecha's voice made Roderich jump and he pushed himself away.

"What the hell are you?" He cried out in alarm. The mecha tiled it's head- - -Roderich absolutely _refused_ to believe the damn thing was male- - -and silver hair felll with gravity, revealing silver cat ears. The sight of them made Roderich's eyes widen even more, and he began to flush heavily.

"I'm Gilbert," the mecha grinned, and a silver tail made its appearance, striking against the black clothes he wore (yes, Roderich finally had to admit...the mecha was a male...). "I'm what you ordered."

"Lies!" Roderich yelled in panic- - -but it was true. He remembered clearly what he ordered: a female mecha, one who was calm and obedient, and looked what he imagined Elizabeta (his first love) would look like at his age. With frustrated growl, he grabbed Gilbert's arm and began stomping out of the apartment. "I should return you now- - -stupid company who can't even get _one_ order right, and sending me defective merchandise- - -" Roderich was cut off when he was suddenly pulled to a stop, and he turn to find Gilbert glaring at him.

"I am _not_ defective." He growled lowly, making Roderich shudder slightly. "And I can do whatever you want me to; that's why I was made."

"What about..." Roderich felt his face flush, and for some reason, felt as though he was thirteen again, confessing to Elizabeta. "Y'know. That. Um..."

"Sex?" Gilbert offered helpfully, and Roderich flushed even more.

"Not so loud!" He hissed. "God, how do you say something like that so easily!"

"I'm good at that, too." Gilbert came close to Roderich, making the violet-eyed male's eyes widen as he tilted his head up to keep eye contact. "I'm good at whatever you want me to do, Roderich, be it sex, or house cleaning, or even cooking. So, don't return me, ok?" Roderich couldn't speak as Gilbert leaned down more. "Let me stay..." Before Roderich could respond, Gilbert pressed his mouth against his own.

It was as if something exploded- - -despite being a mecha, Gilbert's lips were deceptively warm and soft. Roderich stiffened in surprise once more, but couldn't bring himself to move. Gilbert seemed to take this as encouragement, wrapping his arms around Roderich's waist and pulling him closer. As Roderich marveled in how ihuman/i Gilbert felt, Gilbert pried Roderich's lips open with his tongue and began tracing the inside of his mouth. Moaning against his better judgement, Roderich's eyes shot open as he realized what was going on./ppHe pushed against Gilbert, but the mecha pulled him closer, devouring the brunette's mouth with his own. Roderich moaned again when Gilbert brushed his tongue against his own, trying even harder to get away./ppGilbert pulled away slightly, both of them panting heavily, and for a few moments Roderich couldn't speak. Then Gilbert leaned down and pulled him into another kiss, this time slipping his tail between Roderich's legs and rubbing it gently against- - -

Roderich instantly brought his knee up, getting the mecha in his "sensitive" spot. Gilbert pulled away with a yelp, startled when Roderich increased space between them by backing away.

"What...?" Roderich panted heavily, backing away more when Gilbert attempted to get closer. "What the...get away! Stay back!"

"Aww..." Gilbert cooed softly. "That's not what either of us want, Roderich..." He crept closer, and Roderich bumped into the wall trying to get away.

"Stay back!" Roderich repeated, closing his eyes tightly when Gilbert caught up, pressing him against the wall even more, pressing Roderich's hands together against the wall.

"You know you don't want that, Roddy." Gilbert breathed in his ear. Roderich stifled another moan when Gilbert nipped his ear, trailing down to his neck.

"No..." he moaned softly, soft enough that Gilbert could pretend he didn't hear it (which he did) and continue attacking Roderich's neck and lips with kisses and small bites.

"Roderich..." Gilbert panted into his ear, slipping his tail cautiously between Roderich's legs again. Roderich gasped slightly as Gilbert's free hand joined his tail in Roderich's pants.

"St..." Roderich's protest was cut off with a groan as Gilbert grasped his erection in his hand, the mecha's tail probing his entrance. Yelping in surprise, Roderich went to knee him again, but found that his legs were barely able to keep him standing, let alone be useful for defense.

"Shh," Gilbert muttered, his voice husky. Roderich gasped, his hips thrusting unwillingly into Gilbert's hand as his grip tightened. "C'mon, Roderich, c'mon..."

"Ahhh~~~~" Roderich cried suddenly, his head falling back as Gilbert wrapped his hand tighter, his back arching as Gilbert licked his neck.

"Yes..." Gilbert moaned quietly, capturing Roderich's lips again. His tongue shoved its way into his mouth as Roderich cried out.

Panting, Roderich felt his legs give out as he released, Gilbert's tail still probing and his hand getting covered in Roderich's seed. His kisses became gentler as Roderich felt himself slip into darkness.

* * *

><p>"C'mon, Roddy, I said sorry!" Gilbert whined, glancing up when Roderich's stomping session had stopped.<p>

"You deliberately took advantage of me!" Roderich yelled at him. "I told you no, I even- - -god, do you understand what 'no' means? I can't even file for rape- - -"

"Can't rape the willing, Roddy." Gilbert interrupted, his crimson eyes smoldering. "And you were willing, despite what you want to believe." They kept eye contact, Roderich unwilling to give in and Gilbert knowing he was right. After a few minutes, Roderich groaned and glanced at the clock.

"Ah, I'm late!" He cried, grabbing his bag and heading for the door. Hand on the handle as he put his shoes on, Roderich absently called back, "I'm leaving now!"

Gilbert didn't answer right away- - -instead, arms wrapped around his waist firmly. When Roderich turned to yell at Gilbert to let him leave, Gilbert pressed their mouths together firmly, brushing his tongue against Roderich's. When they pulled apart, Gilbert smiled widely.

"Do your best today!" He called. Roderich flushed and untangled himself from Gilbert, slamming the door shut.

* * *

><p>"- - -and that concludes today's lesson." Roderich called, hands on his desk. "Your lunch break starts now."<p>

"Thank you, sensei." The class chorused as they stood up and bowed. They dispensed into their respective groups, talking and giggling with each other as Roderich sat down in his chair, sighing lightly.

"Roddy!" Everyone was startled into silence when the classroom door burst open and Gilbert ran in, bag flying haphazardly on his shoulder behind him. He was wearing the same baggy jeans he had been wearing the day before, only he had a black t-shirt with a burning, bleeding heart on it, as well as, to Roderich's relief, a black beanie on his head./ppRoderich's relief was short-lived, however, when he realized that his students were whispering amongst themselves and glancing at Gilbert as he made his way to Roderich's desk. Flushing heavily, Roderich intercepted him and grabbed his arm, dragging a startled and confused Gilbert out of the class room./pp"Whoa!" Gilbert stumbled when Roderich stopped suddenly outside the building.

"You cannot just barge into my class room and disrupt the lesson- - -"

"I didn't!" Gilbert snapped, crossing his arms and glaring. "I waited outside that door for _ten minutes_ before you said that they were dismissed!" Roderich blinked as he thought about what Gilbert had just told him; if he had, in fact, waited outside the door until they were finished, it meant he had at least a bit of what he had originally ordered.

"That is beside the point!" Roderich snapped, shaking his head angrily. "What are you even doing here?" Gilbert smiled and, after rummaging through his bag, held out a bento.

"You forgot a lunch, so I made one for you!" Gilbert looked at Roderich expectantly, his head tilted to the side. Roderich flushed heavily. Reaching over, he reluctantly took the bento with a sigh.

Before he could apologize or say anything, Gilbert grabbed his arm and pulled him close, kissing him heavily. Roderich struggled half-heartedly, torn between not wanting to kiss the mecha and especially not wanting to get caught, and giving into the sensations of Gilbert's mouth on his.

Then Gilbert started moving his tongue into Roderich's mouth and reaching down to grope him, and Roderich shoved him away forcefully, managing to create some distance between himself and the mecha.

"Stop doing that!" Roderich hissed out through heaving breaths, face flushed. Gilbert just smirked at him.

"Gilbert!" A female voice called out, startling them both out of their staring contest. "Gilbert! Here's where you ended up!" They both turned to see a woman running towards them. Gilbert waved at her, smiling happily.

"Hey, Boss!" He yelled. Roderich groaned into his hand, covering his face and sighing heavily.

"I saw that!" The unidentified woman squealed. "I take it that your advances are acceptable?"

"As if, Liz!" Roderich sighed heavily when Gilbert answered "We've actually only gotten- - -"

"Don't say anything like that, moron!" Roderich cried out suddenly, moving to cover Gilbert's mouth. As he did, his violet eyes met startled emerald, and he faltered. "Elizabeta?"

"Roderich?" She gasped, surprised. Gilbert looked between the two of them, a confused look on his face. Moving Roderich's hand, he frowned at Elizabeta.

"Boss?" He questioned softly. It snapped her out of her surprised daze and she grabbed both of their arms, dragging them away.

"Let's go to the main office for a few minutes." She said firmly, not leaving room for argument. Gilbert tilted his head to the side, looking at her curiously, before shrugging altogether and just following her aimlessly.

Roderich, however, studied her as thoroughly as he could from behind.

It seemed as though his original idea for the mecha had not been far off. Elizabeta's eyes were, obviously, still the emerald he loved and adored even now; her hair to the exact length he had imagined it would be (despite being something of a tomboy when they were younger, Elizabeta's pride and joy had always been her hair), and the same shade of brown he remembered. A complete contrast of Gilbert, she wore tight-fitting jeans and what looked like a Hungarian military jacket, showing off her curves.

Out of the corner of his eye, Gilbert noticed Roderich's staring.

* * *

><p>"So, Roderich," Elizabeta started, sitting him down across from her. "You bought our personalized mecha for your own use. How do you like him so far?"<p>

"I don't!" Roderich cried slightly hysterically, unable to bring himself to yell at the woman he had never managed to get out of his mind. "Elizabeta, it's nothing like the mecha I had originally ordered! Why did the order get messed up?" Elizabeta sighed lightly, rubbing her temples.

"We're still a new company, Mecha Love Corp. Most of our mechas, like Gilbert, are still prototypes. It's on the site, Roderich, dear." The endearment made Roderich calm down slightly. Elizabeta smiled encouragingly. "Our designer, Mr. Honda Kiku, handles all our orders. It's possible that he sent you Gilbert by accident. Unfortunately, Mr. Honda isn't in today. I'll ask him for you tomorrow, and see if we can't settle this mess."

"Thank you, Elizabeta." Roderich sighed happily, leaning back in his seat. Gilbert frowned slightly, but didn't say anything, merely stared down at his hands.

"However," Elizabeta stated, her eyes flashing. "I saw you two kissing- - -Kiku may not want to exchange him because of that. He can be a peculiar man, Kiku." Roderich nodded his thanks and stood up, reaching uncertainly over the desk to shake Elizabeta's hand. She stood as well, giving the violet-eyed male a kiss on the cheek. "It was good seeing you again, Roderich."

"You as well, Elizabeta." Roderich repeated the action, flushing lightly. Gilbert looked away, standing slightly stiffly. Elizabeta turned to him, smiling sweetly.

"Take good care of your master, Gilbert." She said in a mock-order, and Gilbert smiled briefly at her. Elizabeta kissed his cheek as well, and they left the office, Roderich heading back towards his class and Gilbert heading back home, both deep in thought.

* * *

><p>Roderich opened the door tiredly, entering the quiet house and taking off his shoes.<p>

"I'm back." He called out quietly, yawning as he placed his bag down. "Gilbert?"

"I'm here." Came from a room in the hallway. "Welcome back."

"What's going on?" Roderich asked, confusion filling his eyes as he walked down the hallway in his apartment. "Why are you in here?"

"No reason." Roderich didn't buy it and, after locating the door Gilbert's voice was coming from, he entered the room.

It was dark, and Roderich reached blindly around the room until he found the light switch. Despite the slight protests from Gilbert's general area, Roderich flipped the lights on.

Gilbert was standing in the middle of the room, smiling weakly.

"Hey, Roddy..." He tried, but Roderich didn't hear him. Instead, he merely stared at him, horrified. Gilbert had taken something sharp- - -most likely a knife of some sort from the kitchen- - -and had attempted something of what would have been a suicide if he wasn't a mecha. His right arm had cuts all over it, deep ones that had some sort of liquid pooling out swiftly.

"What are you doing?" Roderich cried in horror, taking three steps forward and yanking Gilbert's arms apart. Gilbert tilted his head back and laughed.

"I have no idea!" He continued laughing, eyes wide with a strange mix of hysteria and panic, and Roderich was again struck with how ihuman/i he was. "I'm doing as my master wants- - -even though I have no idea what the hell he wants, so I'm kinda just winging it here."

"You absolute moron!" Roderich hissed, dragging Gilbert out of the room and headed toward the kitchen, the mecha's crazed laughter following them. "Who says I want you to do this to yourself? Crazy asshole! Pull yourself together! What are you thinking?" Gilbert stopped laughing so suddenly, Roderich turned to look at him curiously.

"I was thinking..." Gilbert said slowly, "that, perhaps, my master would want a different type of mecha- - -if I get damaged in some way, shape, or form, if it happens accidentally, or is self-inflicted, or on purpose, then my master can return me and get a different one." Roderich frowned at the pensive look on Gilbert's face.

"Who said I wanted a different mecha, Gilbert?"

"I'm not stupid!" Gilbert yelled suddenly, startling Roderich so much he dropped the mecha's hands. "I saw you looking at Boss; I heard you tell her you didn't want me. Kiku's not going to switch me out, even if Boss talks to him, because he doesn't like taking mechas from their masters after they've kissed, even if they haven't gone further than that!"

"Why not?" Roderich asked, eyes wide with surprise. Gilbert snorted.

"After a mecha's kissed its master, the mecha forms a bond with them." Gilbert looked down. "And the mecha would do anything- - -literally, _anything_, for its master. I'm doing what I believe would make you happier." There was an eerie silence after Gilbert's declaration, the whole apartment going silent. Roderich stared at Gilbert in surprise and worry, and Gilbert steadfastly ignored his gaze. The liquid continued to flow freely down his arm- - -out in the light, Roderich could see it was almost black, like oil or something.

"You're an idiot." Roderich stated firmly, dragging Gilbert again. "You think harming yourself will make me happy? If you think that, you're stupider than I thought. You doing this to yourself only makes me worry about you more." There was a light pink dusting on Roderich's cheeks admitting that. Gilbert stared at him in surprise before grinning.

"So Roddy does care about me!" Gilbert teased hesitantly. Roderich turned redder and pushed him into a kitchen chair.

"I doubt I have the items to fix you properly." Roderich grabbed a first-aid kit and a needle and thread. "However, I shall sew you up and see if Elizabeta's Honda Kiku can fix you properly tomorrow." He returned to Gilbert, who pulled him down and kissed him thoroughly with his uncut hand. Roderich muffled a protest, trying to pull away; Gilbert proved to be strong with only one hand and kept him firmly in place. Roderich sighed in exasperation through his nose as Gilbert's tongue pressed through his lips and traced through his mouth. After a few seconds, Roderich pulled away. "No more- - -let me sew you up."

Gilbert grinned and proffered his arm.

* * *

><p>So. i'm not quite sure what i'm doing. yes, i got this idea from a manga...and i couldn't help but add the hetalia twist to it...enjoy?<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

"What did you do to him?" Roderich blinked stupidly for a moment at the sudden shout, aware only a few moments later that Gilbert was no longer by his side- - -he was in the hands of a small Asian male who was fretting over Gilbert's sewn-up arm. "Gilbert-san, what happened?"

"Just...it's nothing, Kiku." Gilbert laughed, rubbing his head with his uninjured hand.

"Can you fix him?" Roderich asked curiously, stepping over to Gilbert's side again. The smaller male's head shot up at Roderich's question, dark eyes searching Roderich's critically. After a few unnerving moments of silence, where the only sound was the sound of orders being shouted in the background, the male nodded.

"Honda Kiku." He said as an introduction. "I am the head designer for all the mechas we create, as well as the head of the creation of said mechas." He peered curiously at Roderich once more. "As Elizabeta-san probably mentioned, I also check the orders that go into creating our mechas, and it appears I have made an erroneous assumption in the creation of Gilbert-san."

Relief filled Roderich, though he managed to keep it off his face when he thought of their true reason for returning- - -Gilbert's fit.

"Ah, well- - -"

"Unfortunately, even after Elizabeta-san explained everything to me, I feel it unnecessary to...ah, recall Gilbert-san, if you excuse the term I use." Roderich felt the relief flush out of his system, as surely as he felt the color draining from his face at the small mechanic's words. Before he could question what Kiku meant, the man's eyes dropped back to Gilbert's arm. "There's not much damage done- - -I shall have Gilbert-san back in your apartment by nightfall at least, if not early tomorrow morning."

"I- - -that is fine..." Roderich stammered. Kiku smiled at him, his dark eyes warming slightly as he turned.

"Come along, Gilbert-san." Kiku said easily, turning and walking briskly towards another part of the company.

Gilbert paused before turning to Roderich and kissing him fully, holding Roderich's collar tightly as he pressed his tongue through Roderich's lips and coaxed his own tongue to join the mecha's. Roderich groaned slightly, trying to push Gilbert away irritably, but he wouldn't so much as budge. With an internal roll of his eyes, Roderich allowed himself to give in slightly- - -he gave in enough to press back and move his tongue in time with Gilbert's- - -before pushing him off.

"Go on- - -it's not as though you'll be gone all day." Roderich muttered irritably. "Though one can hope." He added softly. Gilbert's ear twitched, but other than that he gave no notice he heard Roderich.

"See ya at home." Gilbert grinned. "Do your best today."

"Yes..." Roderich flushed when he realized that Kiku was watching them, a slightly amused expression on his face. "All right, I shall see you at home."

Gilbert turned and ran up to Kiku, who gently but firmly grabbed his uninjured arm and pulled him towards the back of the building; the silver-haired mecha turned once and waved at Roderich as he watched them disappear around a corner.

"Kiku will take good care of him, Roderich." A voice said suddenly, and he jumped about ten feet in the air.

"Ah, well, I...wha- - -beg pardon?" Roderich stammered as he whirled around, coming face to face...well, face to chest with a worker.

"Kiku." The worker gestured awkwardly to where Kiku and Gilbert disappeared. "He will take good care of him. Kiku feels this...parental vibe for all the mechas he creates. Gilbert was actually the very first one to be fully completed and operational, which usually gets him special treatment with Kiku and Elizabeta."

"And you are...?" Roderich asked warily, eyeing the taller male before him. He had blonde hair and clear blue eyes, which were trained awkwardly on the floor as he flushed lightly- - -this worker was clearly not used to talking much.

"Ludwig Beilschmidt." He said firmly, holding his hand out. "Elizabeta used my name in creating Gilbert- - -so, in a way, he's like my _bruder_..." Roderich raised an eyebrow and Ludwig flushed darker. "That's how Elizabeta puts it, ok? She wants all the mechas to feel wanted and loved, so she's assigned little 'families' to them, with herself and Kiku as the 'parents'."

"That is just like Elizabeta." Roderich chuckled and Ludwig smiled in response, slightly less awkward then he had been a few minutes prior.

"I- - -"

"~~~~~~~~!" Came a happy cry, and the blonde male was suddenly pushed slightly forward. A head popped up from over his shoulder, light brown hair with dark brown ears and eyes closed tightly. Ludwig sighed inaudibly and reached over with his left hand, patting the mecha softly as his face flushed dark red.

"This is my mecha, Feliciano Vargas." He muttered. "Feliciano, this is the man who bought _bruder_, Roderich Edelstein." The mecha- - -Feliciano, Roderich internally corrected- - -opened amber eyes and stared at him curiously.

"Ooooh..." He murmured slowly. Then he beamed brightly. "Gilbert can be a handful sometimes. I'm so glad you liked him!" Roderich flushed lightly and decided to...ah, _not_ correct the innocent mecha's decidedly incorrect assumption. He felt as though denying the mecha his ideals would not be the best.

"Roderich? Don't you have a class to be teaching?" Elizabeta's voice called out, and Roderich turned to see her standing with another worker. She excused herself and hurried over to him. "Why are you still here?"

"Technically, they have a holiday today." Roderich shrugged, realizing belatedly he hadn't told Gilbert. "Besides, I was having a pleasant conversation with Ludwig and Feliciano." Elizabeta smiled warmly at the two, reaching out and touching one of Feliciano's ears.

"He's one of our favorites." She cooed. "Such a cute, happy mecha..." Feliciano grinned and made a noise in the back of his throat that sounded suspiciously like a purr. Ludwig flushed even more and carefully took the mecha off his back.

"I should get back to work." He coughed into his hand awkwardly and smiled slightly. "It was nice meeting you, Roderich. Take good care of _bruder_, please." With that, the blonde male departed swiftly. After a few minutes, Feliciano darted after him, waving goodbye over his shoulder as he shouted for Ludwig to wait for him.

"How many mechas have you created?" Roderich asked curiously, feeling shy around the object of his affections. As surprised as he was to bump into Elizabeta again, he wasn't willing to pass up an opportunity to get to know the girl again, as well as perhaps getting to date her.

"I'm not sure." Elizabeta looked to the roof, emerald eyes calculating. "Let's see, there's Yao, Gilbert, Feliciano and Lovino, Arthur, Heracles, Matthew..." As the woman trailed on, going on about the different personalities the mechas had, Roderich gazed at her with affection in his eyes- - -clearly, whatever had caused her sudden move to Hungary had not had any lasting effect on her. She remained as lively and passionate as he remembered.

He wasn't aware of moving until her hand was in his and she tilted her head questioningly.

"Elizabeta." He said slowly. "Would you care to catch up over a cup of coffee? There is much we could talk about." Elizabeta blinked slowly before a grin spread across her face. Laughing, she looped her arm through his and smiled at him.

"You sound so formal, Roderich." She sighed happily, placing her cheek on his shoulder and closing her eyes. "Just like I remembered. All right, a cup of coffee sounds good just about now. Let's go."

* * *

><p>"I can't believe it, Gilbert-san." Kiku murmured as he took Gilbert's arm and began pulling the skin covering off. Gilbert shrugged and sat still, watching Kiku work as he gently tore off strips of 'skin'. "You seem so different already- - -so unlike yourself."<p>

"I've only been gone two, maybe three days, tops." Gilbert laughed, careful to not move his arm too much. "And Roddy and I, we were here the other day."

"I know." Kiku sighed, cutting the 'skin' at Gilbert's shoulder and placing it on the table next to him. A mass of technology sat before him, mimicking the human arm with metal and tubes. Taking the mechanical hand, Kiku twisted it slowly until he located a thin tube that had been sliced neatly in half. "Flex your fingers, Gilbert-san."

Gilbert obeyed, and the mass of metal moved the way a human hand would, fingers flexing with ease.

"Perhaps I feel that way because Gilbert-san is the first to officially leave the factory." Kiku said, taking notes as he effortlessly continued their earlier conversation. Picking up the technology before him, Kiku took a piece of tubing and attached it to the sliced tube. Despite how bad it probably looked to Roderich, the tube was only cut in one place. "This may hurt slightly- - -the nerve endings this deep have yet to shut off."

"Got it, Kiku." Gilbert winced slightly when Kiku got a hot mixture to attach the tubing together. "Really? I would have figured someone was bought."

"Oh, some are in use." Kiku said, swiftly gluing the tubes and smiling at his work. "Feliciano-san, for example. Flex again, and then lift your arm."

"Little Feli?" Gilbert questioned, obeying a second time and doing as ordered. "Who has him?"

"Ludwig-san." Kiku took more notes. "He brings Feliciano with him to work every day; or rather, Feliciano doesn't want to stay home alone, so he stays here, unless Ludwig brings him to his home. It's almost as if he'd never been purchased. Touch the ground, then bend your elbow." As Gilbert obeyed, he grinned.

"So does Ludwig seem happier with Feli?" Kiku made a noncommittal noise and Gilbert laughed. "That's great- - -I'd imagined Feli to be a good mecha for him. He needs to loosen up a bit anyway."

"If you want, you may see them now." Kiku said, smiling gently at the mecha before him as Gilbert's ears twitched. "The tubing needs to dry properly, then we need to run some tests to make sure it works properly before we add the 'skin' to it again."

"Got it Kiku." Gilbert jumped off the table he had been sitting at and, with a slight bow to the Asian male, he took off running down the hall. He hadn't seen anyone the last time he had been there, so he was excited to see everyone again- - -

He skid to a stop as he realized that Roderich was still there, talking to Elizabeta. Gilbert frowned, confused- - -wasn't Roderich supposed to be in class? He was late...

Elizabeta laughed suddenly, and as Gilbert watched, took Roderich's arm in her own before leaning her head on his shoulders. Gilbert's stomach dropped at the adoring look in Roderich's violet eyes- - -_I've never seen him look so content and...happy..._- - -as the two walked out. Feeling a sudden weight on his shoulders, Gilbert took a few steps back and leaned against a wall, taking deep breaths. He covered his eyes with his hands, briefly considering going back to Kiku, when there was a small noise from in front of him, sounding suspiciously like a throat clearing.

Moving his hand and plastering his trade-marked grin on his face, Gilbert looked down at the mecha before him. Slightly long wavy blonde hair and violet eyes peered up at him from behind a white bear. The mecha before him wore a baggy red and white sweater decorated with a maple leaf, blue jeans underneath that and had no shoes or socks on. His bare feet rocked him back and forth as he shook lightly, though he managed a small smile for Gilbert.

"Hello, Gilbert." He murmured unsurely, hugging the bear tighter, his golden ears and tail twitching side to side nervously. Gilbert tilted his head to the side curiously as he assessed the mecha before him.

"Ah..." He trailed off slightly, and the boy's face fell slightly as he hugged the bear tighter. The bear squeaked, letting out a mechanical sounding 'who?', as Gilbert laughed. "Mattie!" Gilbert threw his arms around him, pulling the smaller boy's face into his chest. "You know I was just joking, Mattie. How's it going?"

"The same." Came from his chest, muffled under Gilbert's black tank top that Kiku gave the mechas when he worked on fixing them. "It's quieter without you, though."

"Aww, does that mean you miss me?" Gilbert teased, pulling away and ruffling the blonde hair. Matthew grinned slightly and ducked his face back into the bear, muffling his response even more.

"I thought I heard your voice." Gilbert's head snapped to the left, hand still buried in Matthew's hair, as one of the older mechas came forward. He was Asian, and had long black hair that was pulled into a braid at the nape of his neck. Smiling gently at the two, he came to a stop before them.

"Yao." Gilbert grinned, releasing Matthew's hair and bowing slightly at the mecha.

"Welcome back, Gilbert, aru." Yao tucked his hands through his sleeves and bowed back, the braid falling over his shoulder as he did. "How are things with Roderich?"

"Fine." Gilbert answered- - -too quickly. Both Matthew and Yao looked at him with a raised eyebrow, though Matthew's look disappeared a few seconds later as he gently grasped Gilbert's hand.

"Come on," he said softly, beaming up at him. "Everyone will be excited to see you again."

Matthew lead him down the hall and through a door where there were mechas lounging around. One was curled on the floor like the cat it resembled, head using it's arms as a pillow as it's ears twitched unconsciously. Another was sitting in a corner of the room, staring at the ceiling above it and talking warmly to itself. In the opposite corner, two more sat, both peering down at a handheld game one was playing furiously, a red flush on his cheeks as he cussed the game out in fluent Italian.

When they heard the door open, they all looked up (with the exception of the one sleeping).

"Gilbert!"

"Feliciano!" Feliciano ran up to Gilbert, throwing himself at the taller mecha with everything he had, his arms wrapping around Gilbert's neck as his legs wrapped around the silver haired mecha's waist.

"How's everyone?" Gilbert asked, Feliciano securely on him. The over eager mecha purred something unintelligible as he rubbed his cheek on Gilbert's face, his excitement making small tears of happiness form in the corner of his eyes. From the corner of the room, Lovino glowered at him, game forgotten.

"Don't think that just because you were bought and whatever I forgive you." The mecha growled, tail twitching irritably. "I haven't forgotten what you did to _fratello_ and that German bastard you call your brother." He was almost identical to his brother, but his eyes were green, and his hair darker than Feliciano's. For some strange reason, Kiku had designed them to look as identical as possible while Elizabeta gave them completely different personalities- - -Feliciano was fun and loving, caring too much about anything and everything. Lovino, on the other hand, acted like a spoiled rotten child with a sailor's mouth.

It amused Gilbert to no end to just piss off the 'older' twin.

"Shut up, git." Came an irritable voice. "You're scaring everyone." Gilbert turned to see emerald eyes fixed firmly on the sky, and the pale mecha couldn't help the snort that came out- - -Arthur Kirkland.

"Still seeing unicorns and faeries, mate?" Gilbert asked, mocking Arthur's British accent. The blonde mecha glared at him out of the corner of his eye, but didn't move.

"Shove it." He muttered angrily, flipping him off. Gilbert chuckled that time- - -Arthur's 'ability' to see faeries came a long while after he was made. He and Gilbert had been racing around in the grass outside the original headquarters of Mecha Love Corp in Hungary when Gilbert had spotted Matthew, half-finished, struggling to come out into the yard. The younger blonde mecha had somehow managed to get off the operating table and drag himself to the door, his legs not working properly and only half covered in 'skin'. Gilbert skid to a stop, and Arthur didn't have time to do much but throw his arms out to the side as he crashed headfirst into the grass, damaging several pieces in his mind.

Kiku had tried to fix him to the best of his abilities, but a side effect of Arthur's damage had him seeing faeries and unicorns and other imaginary animals.

"...hey, Gilbert..." came a sleepy murmur from below him. Gilbert crouched down to look Heracles in the eyes, one pair opening and closing sleepily. "...haven't seen you around lately..."

"Been bought, buddy." Gilbert smirked. "Where've you been?" Heracles blinked a few more times.

"...sleeping..." He murmured finally. Gilbert shook his head, standing up again so the brown-haired mecha could go back to sleep.

"What a sloth." Gilbert sighed. "I'll never understand why Kiku created you."

"...'m Kiku's now..." Heracles called up to him. "...started yesterday..." Gilbert threw his head back and laughed, Feliciano laughing with him.

"Anyway!" He called out. "I'm only here for a limited time, so we'll all have to get everything outta our system before I leave again!"

"Shut up!" Lovino snarled. "No one cares!"

"Veeeee, _fratello_, be nice! What if we never see Gilbert again?" Feliciano scolded, releasing Gilbert. "Wouldn't that be sad?"

"Fuck no!" Lovino spat back. "The sooner he's gone, the better!"

"Hey!" Everyone turned to look at Yao, who had his hands on Matthew's shoulders. "Matthew has a question, aru." Everyone turned to look at the blonde, whose tail moved slowly from side to side as he hugged his mecha-bear tighter. "Go on, aru."

"What...what's it like?" Matthew asked quietly. "Outside, in the real world? What's it like, Gilbert?" The soft-spoken question got everyone's attention; Lovino moved out of his corner to crouch by Feliciano, who was sitting by Gilbert's feet. Heracles sat up slowly, brown ears twitching as he rubbed his eyes and looked at the group sleepily. Yao smiled down at Matthew, moving them both so they were closer as well. Even Arthur stopped staring at the ceiling and turned to them, his emerald eyes looking over curiously.

Gilbert tilted his head back as he thought, placing his hands behind his silver hair as he sighed.

"Well." He started, sitting down and placing his hand on Matthew's head. "I guess if I have to explain it..."

* * *

><p>"Ah, Roderich, I've really missed you." Elizabeta sighed happily as she rubbed her eyes. "It's hard to believe it's been so long since we've last spoken." Roderich smiled warmly at her over his coffee- - -they had been sitting together for close to three hours, talking about whatever came to mind with the same effortlessness that had been there when they were younger. She smiled back warmly, her eyes sparkling.<p>

"It's been great seeing you, Elizabeta." Roderich responded. "It always has been." It was especially nice knowing that Kiku was just a friend and co-worker of the Hungarian. Roderich felt himself smile as he watched Elizabeta with unhidden affection. He leaned over the table slightly, wondering if it would be too forward of him to kiss her, when Elizabeta shook her head, stopping him in his movements.

The woman's eyes turned gentle when he gave her a confused look and she reached across the table, holding Roderich's hand in her own.

"I know what you're doing, Roderich." She said softly. "It's not going to work."

"I- - -" Elizabeta shook her head and held onto his hand tighter.

"Gilbert loves you." She told him. "I can tell- - -he acts different around you. Not completely different, but different enough." Roderich was reminded suddenly of Kiku's peering eyes, gazing at him critically. Elizabeta shook her head again. "I couldn't do that to Gilbert, or to any of my mechas." Elizabeta shrugged slightly. "I'm sorry."

"They aren't real people, Elizabeta." Roderich said gently, after thinking about what to say. "Whatever you're convinced Gilbert feels, or even Feliciano, they don't feel it. They aren't people like you and me, Elizabeta. They're computers, in the form of people. They don't have the same emotions and abilities we do. Eventually, Gilbert and Feliciano and all the other mechas you've created will break down and be destro- - -" SLAP!

Everyone in the coffee house turned to look at the couple in the corner who, until a few moments ago, been talking civilly. Elizabeta looked furious, her hand still in the air as if she was considering backhanding Roderich as well. Roderich, for his part, had his hand on his cheek in shock, staring at the emerald-eyed woman in surprise.

"That's not important." She hissed angrily, grabbing Roderich's face and tilting it up to look at her over the table. "They feel every emotion we do- - -and they're more sensitive than we are. You know this; I could tell by the way you acted with Feliciano. It's the same thing with Gilbert. You acted differently around Feliciano than you did with Gilbert. I could see it. With him, you're harsher and more like a spoiled aristocrat. But with Feli, you brought your attitude down a notch and you interacted with him the same way you interacted with Ludwig."

"That's completely different!" Roderich snapped angrily, standing as well to be on eye level with Elizabeta.

"How so?" She challenged angrily, and Roderich thought she looked rather like a wildcat- - -absolutely beautiful, but full of power...and willing to do anything to protect her 'young'. "It's not fair to Gilbert that you do that to him." She shook her head and placed money on the table, grabbing Roderich's arm and taking him with her. "Let's go- - -you've got to go home and I need to get back to work."

* * *

><p>So, I had this chapter ending on a more parental!Kiku x child!Gilbert moment, but then the last half of the chapter got deleted. I hope I continued to keep them in character, and thanks for all the awesome reviews! (my favorite was from the one who said they read the manga but liked my version better- - -that made me feel all warm and happy...) <p>


	3. Chapter 3

"Lift your arm a bit, then flex your fingers." Kiku ordered as he attatched the final bit of 'skin over Gilbert's arm. Gilbert obeyed quietly, his thoughts focused on Roderich.

"Hey, Kiku?" He asked quietly. The Asian 'hmm'ed and Gilbert continued. "Can you..." Frowning slightly when Gilbert paused, Kiku moved to look at him.

"What is it, Gilbert-san?" Gilbert took a deep breath, feeling childish suddenly.

"Can you...add something to me?" Kiku pulled away completely, looking down at Gilbert with a raised eyebrow, inadvertently reminding him of Yao.

"Add what, exactly, Gilbert-san?" Gilbert glared off to the side, almost as though he was trying to hide his flushed face.

"I feel as though Roderich isn't pleased with me." He muttered hesitantly. "I want you to add or remove whatever you think would make me better for him." Kiku smiled gently, taking in Gilbert's appearance. There was an unnatural flush on his face, his ears twitching as his tail wrapped nervously around his arm. The whole conversation was something Kiku never expected to be having with the over confident mecha, he couldn't help but reach over and touch Gilbert's head gently.

"You're fine, Gilbert-san." He murmured, rubbing the mecha's head.

In a bout of even more uncharacteristic-ness, Gilbert threw his arms around Kiku's waist and buried his face in the Asian's chest, something he hadn't done since he was first made.

"I just feel like I'm failing you and Boss and I hate it." Gilbert's words were muffled. "Especially because of all the things you guys have done for all of us. I mean- - -dammit, I'm the test run and I'm not even working properly!" Kiku couldn't help the chuckled as Gilbert pulled back, face now as crimson as his eyes from embarrassment.

"You work fine." Kiku assured him, helping the mecha stand. "Roderich-san will come around, I'm sure of it."

"What if he doesn't?" Kiku pursed his lips and took the tank top from Gilbert, handing over the mecha's black t-shirt in return.

"He will."

* * *

><p>Gilbert sat by the table, waiting. In the background, the oven 'beep'ed and Roderich moved towards it. Gilbert didn't move much, aside from his tail flickering to the side every now and then, his ears twitching at every noise that penetrated the otherwise silent apartment.<p>

RING! RING! RI- - -

"Boss?" Gilbert put the phone on speaker, leaning on his forearms in front of the device. In the kitchen, Roderich stopped moving.

"Hello, Gilbert. Is Roderich there?" Gilbert licked his lips, his crimson eyes darting towards the kitchen briefly.

"In the kitchen, Boss. Want me to get him?"

"In a moment. I want to speak to you first." Gilbert raised an eyebrow but settled down in front of the phone. "You still there, hon?" Gilbert made an affirmative noise and Elizabeta started talking. "Kiku mentioned yesterday that you wanted alterations. He also said he refused, but that's beside the point. Gilbert, you can't change your personality for your master just because he is being insufferable! That's not going to help anything, hon."

"But I honestly don't know what to do, Boss." Gilbert muttered. Somehow, admitting it over the phone to Elizabeta was much easier than telling Kiku three days before.

"C'mon, where is the Gilbert who teases Arthur and Lovino mercilessly? Who pretends to not see Matthew to make him smile and who is always boasting that he's cool?"

"Not cool, Boss- - -I'm _awesome_" Gilbert grinned sitting up. "I'm the awesomest mecha you've ever created." Elizabeta laughed over the phone.

"There's my mecha." She said proudly, and Gilbert could hear the smile in her voice.

"Thanks, Boss."

"Don't mention it, hon. Now get Roderich- - -I'm afraid I was a bit rude and I should apologize for that." Gilbert snorted; Elizabeta's 'bit rude' meant she had managed to somehow, in some way, humiliate them both in anger.

"Sure thing, Boss." He turned only to find Roderich standing in the doorway, watching him with an unreadable expression on his face. For a moment, they just stared, then- - -"Boss wants you."

"There's chocolate cake on the table." Gilbert grinned and jumped up, running for the kitchen.

* * *

><p>Roderich was confused. For the past three days, he heard nothing in the form of an apology or even an explanation from the Hungarian woman. On top of that, Gilbert was acting differently.<p>

He'd noticed it the evening Kiku had Gilbert return home. Gilbert had called out a greeting, and walked past Roderich without a glance or anything. Since then, he hadn't even _attempted_ anything on Roderich, and it was beginning to worry Roderich greatly.

Well, Roderich amended as he checked on the chocolate cake he had placed in the oven forty-five minutes prior, not _worried_, per say, but- - -

The phone rang and before he could answer it, Gilbert's voice rang out, filling the house with 'Boss?'. He froze, wondering what Elizabeta wanted (because she was the only one Gilbert called 'Boss'). Hesitantly, he crept towards the kitchen door, hearing the entire conversation without hearing anything past Elizabeta's accusations of Gilbert's alterations.

Had Gilbert really asked to be changed? Because of him? Roderich felt his stomach drop as he considered Kiku changing Gilbert. Despite his horrible attitude towards Gilbert, Roderich had grown used to Gilbert in the week or so he owned him for. If Kiku had, in fact, altered him in any way, Roderich had half a mind to go to the building and demand Gilbert be changed back.

Roderich found crimson eyes staring at him, but he couldn't come up with anything to say as he searched the eyes for any differences he might spot.

"Boss wants you." Roderich blinked and shook his head. What was he doing? Mentioning the cake in the kitchen, Roderich allowed Gilbert to run past him, walking slowly towards the phone.

"Elizabeta?" He called softly.

"Roderich." The woman's voice came over the line, sighing as she spoke. "I apologize for what happened the other day, in the coffee house. It's just- - -I don't think you understand how important they are, how much those boys mean to me."

"It's fine, Elizabeta." It was strange- - -suddenly, Roderich felt the need to get away. He didn't want to listen to her apologies, or explanations. He felt tired, and as he raised a hand to rub his eyes under his glasses, Roderich realized he really didn't want anything from Elizabeta anymore. It made him feel empty, and as he thought this, his eyes strayed over to the kitchen door, where Gilbert was- - -

"Yes, I- - -" Roderich sighed, rubbing his eyes again. "I'm sorry, Elizabeta. I need to think a few things over...excuse me." Before she could answer, he hung up the phone and made his way towards the room he more or less abandoned the past week or so: his piano room.

Sitting firmly at the piano, Roderich tuned the instrument unconsciously, thinking of Gilbert. Things had changed quite dramatically in the week that he allowed him into his life, Roderich mused, but not all changes had been bad. In fact, despite Gilbert not being what begat originally ordered, it felt nice having someone welcoming him home every day.

Having finished tuning the instrument, Roderich allowed his fingers to rest on the keys before launching into a piece he had wrote for himself in high school- - -the one he had composed for himself to reduce stress and feelings of uncertainty, one he had titled (ironically, now that he thought about it) 'Crimson in Silver Metal'. Closing his eyes, Roderich poured out his confusion and uncertainty in the one piece, losing himself in the music as easily as he always did.

* * *

><p>Hours later, perhaps, Roderich lifted his fingers from the keys, the last note still ringing in the air. After it died out, Roderich sighed, touching the lid of the piano gently.<p>

"I didn't know you could play piano." Roderich lifted his violet eyes to meet the crimson that had suddenly appeared, and he could barely hold back a startled cry that came from him. The silver-haired male ignored it, pushing himself off the wall he had been leaning against and approaching Roderich. Gilbert sat beside him, sending him a smirk as he cracked his knuckles. "Let's see if I can't remember the shit Kimu taught me about piano." Before Roderich could object calling the music the piano produced 'shit', Gilbert had his fingers on the keys and began playing.

Despite what Roderich had been expecting, Gilbert's playing was exceptionally wonderful. The notes that flowed seamlessly from the piano gave Roderich a sense of joy, warmth, and love mixed with a mischief that only Gilbert could come up with, and though it startled Roderich, the one thing he thought of was 'this is how Gilbert views life...'

When Gilbert stopped, grinning broadly and panting lightly, Roderich stared for a moment. Gilbert's face was flushed lightly, and despite appearing to look for Roderich's approval, the pianist could tell Gilbert was extremely proud of his piano skills. Confusion flickered in Gilbert's eyes as Roderich reached out and gently touched the silver-haired male's face and, almost as if unaware of his own actions, brought Gilbert down to kiss him.

Kissing Gilbert the second time didn't throw Roderich off like it did the first time, most likely because he had been the one to initiate it this time. Gilbert seemed to stiffen slightly in surprise before moving his hands off the piano keys and tangling them hesitantly in Roderich's hair, pulling Roderich closer to his body.

He moaned when Gilbert suddenly pushed his tongue into Roderich's mouth, making Roderich turn awkwardly to get a better angle. Roderich winced slightly at the slight pain that came from twisting his back in a weird position, but ignored it in favor of unsurely placing his hands on Gilbert's shoulders.

Gilbert stopped, pulling back far enough to lock his crimson eyes on Roderich's violet but staying close to the point of Roderich feeling the warm breath that came from Gilbert's mouth in small pants.

"Roddy?" He panted quietly, confusion swimming in his eyes as he tilted his head to the side. "You ok?" Roderich didn't answer at first; he tried to lean forward again but Gilbert moved his hands from Roderich's head to his shoulders and kept him back. "Roddy? Roderich, what happened?" Crimson eyes searched Roderich, worry and concern clear beneath the confusion.

Roderich sighed, slumping over slightly in Gilbert's arms.

"It's you..." He murmured. Gilbert made a noise of confusion but Roderich kept talking. "You-You just barge into my life and expect me to take care of you like some-some _kid_ or something, and then you act crazy and injure yourself- - -" Gilbert tried to interject, but Roderich let his head rise again, feeling a uncharacteristic rant come on. "And all the while, you act so _**human**_ I have to remind myself time and time again that you _aren't_- - -"

"So this is because I act human...when I'm not..." Gilbert interrupted slowly, his tail drooping over the piano bench as his ears flattened against his head. His eyes moved from Roderich's to the piano keys again, and Roderich felt a pang in his heart at what seemed like utter defeat in the silver male's eyes. "Do you want me to not act human then? I can't do it now, but if you ask Kiku- - -"

"That man has changed you enough, I dare say." Roderich muttered, turning away with a blush on his face when Gilbert peered at him questioningly out of the corner of his eye. "Your entire demeanor has changed, Gilbert. I've noticed it lately. You haven't made any move towards me since I took you to him to fix your arm."

Gilbert didn't seem to know what to do, so he settled for staring at Roderich out of the corner of his eyes for a few more moments before slowly and purposefully turning towards Roderich, moving his leg so that he straddled the piano bench.

"Let's fix that, shall we?" Gilbert murmured, his voice husky. Before Roderich could ask what the man had in mind, Gilbert moved forward, tilting Roderich's head back as he claimed the brunette's lips.

Sparks seemed to explode inside Roderich as Gilbert entwined his pale fingers into Roderich's hair, making him moan slightly in the back of his throat. Gilbert took it as a sign of encouragement and pressed harder, licking and nipping Roderich's lips gently. Roderich placed his hands back on Gilbert's shoulders, hesitating slightly- - -he felt as though accepting Gilbert's advances now would mean something different than the first time; accepting them now would mean that Roderich was accepting he was wrong when he had said that Gilbert didn't have feelings like he did, would be acknowledging those feelings and, most likely, encouraging them.

Roderich pulled back a little, ignoring Gilbert's slight moan of disappointment, and looked- - -really _looked_- - -at Gilbert.

His face was almost as crimson as his eyes, and he was panting slightly, his arms winding around Roderich as his hands stayed fisted in Roderich's hair. There was a bit of saliva on his mouth- - -most likely his own, maybe Roderich's, possibly both mixed together- - -and there was this look in his eyes that was screaming 'dangerous!' because it was so wild and animalistic, so instinctive and lust-filled that sent a chill down Roderich's spine but went straight to his nether regions.

And yet...

Underneath the animalistic look was this gentle, caring, almost loving feel. Though his arms were loosely wrapped around Roderich, they screamed possessiveness and a general sense of 'mine, fuck off, don't touch', and the hands fisted in his hair were soft and gentle, completely unlike the forceful personality the silver-haired male seemed to radiate. The flush on Gilbert's face reminded Roderich of the first time they kissed, how surprised he had been to realize that Gilbert felt human even though he wasn't...

He leaned toward, wrapping his arms around Gilbert again as he angled his head, kissing Gilbert once more. Gilbert's hands instantly started roaming, both trailing down Roderich's hair, face, neck- - -

Roderich moaned quietly into Gilbert's mouth as one hand palmed his rising problem and the other trailed back up his shirt, tracing the skin underneath with pale fingers.

"Can I, Roddy?" Gilbert panted against Roderich's lips. "Is it ok?"

"Fine..." Roderich panted, closing his eyes as Gilbert added more pressure. "Ah..."

Gilbert smirked again, pulling Roderich closer as his tail wrapped around the pianist's leg slowly. Roderich sighed shakily when Gilbert trailed his lips down his neck, closing his eyes and tilting his head back.

'I really shouldn't...' Roderich thought faintly to himself as Gilbert's hand began applying pressure again. 'I shouldn't encourage this...'

"Don't think so much," Gilbert hissed in his ear quietly, biting it softly. "Just go with it, for now." Roderich groaned again as Gilbert trailed kisses down his face, meeting his lips and forcing Roderich's mouth open to search the warm space; Roderich instinctively reciprocated

And with that, he gave in.

* * *

><p>Sorry it took me forever to update and all's anyway, since people have been asking, I shall tell: the anime I got this idea from is called 'Love Neko'. I hope I kept everyone in at least semi-character! Happy Friday the 13th! <p>


	4. Chapter 4

Roderich lay in his bed, blinking slowly.

The first thing he noticed was that he wasn't alone- - -there was a slightly warm, breathing being next to him. Hesitantly, Roderich turned his head to look at his bedmate; upon seeing Gilbert's silver hair and ears, Roderich relaxed slightly, laying his head back on the pillow and sighing lightly.

At least he had _some_ control, Roderich thought. He hadn't allowed Gilbert to go any further than the first time they met (which felt so long ago...), and though the silverette whined and made promises in that husky voice of his, Roderich had managed to stay firm until Gilbert gave up.

Roderich turned to Gilbert again; the paler male was sleeping on his stomach, arms crossed under the pillow. His breaths were deep and even, and every now and then his eyelids would twitch- - -like a real person's eyes would in deep sleep- - -making Roderich wonder what was going through his head. Gilbert's 'skin' was pale and unmarred; Roderich couldn't help but reach out, his fingertips hovering over the white shoulder.

"Roddy..." Gilbert mumbled in his sleep, shifting his shoulders. His movement caused Roderich's fingertips to touch him, and once he did it was almost as if Roderich couldn't stop. He traced the same pattern into Gilbert's 'skin', his fingers going in circles on Gilbert's arm and shoulder. The small touches caused Gilbert's eyelids to flutter slightly before opening halfway, his crimson eyes staring sleepily at Roderich.

For a moment, both just stared at each other, neither saying a word.

Then Gilbert shifted again, turning onto his side so that he could face Roderich properly, the blanket that had been pulled up to his shoulder blades slipping down to pool around his hips, his head held up by his hand.

"Morning." He murmured lazily, blinking slowly as he realized Roderich had yet to remove his hand from Gilbert's shoulder.

"Good morning." Roderich replied, moving his free arm to cushion his head as he sighed in contentment. Though he had initially been surprised to find Gilbert with him, Roderich was all but amazed at how easily he had accepted the other's presence in his room- - -even in his bed. Sighing again, Roderich closed his eyes as he relaxed against the warmth coming from the blankets and from Gilbert.

The silence that filled the room was comfortable and lazy, almost like a typical Sunday morning. Neither male moved from the bed save the occasional shifting to remain comfortable on the mattress.

After a few moments, Gilbert couldn't help himself and hesitantly reached out, touching Roderich's face with a feather like touch; Roderich opened one eye lazily and watched Gilbert for a moment before shutting his eyes again. Feeling slightly more confident, Gilbert began tracing Roderich's face, not missing the way Roderich tilted his head slightly into Gilbert's hand.

The phone rang suddenly, shattering through the peaceful atmosphere and causing both males to groan in unison. Roderich moved to get up, but Gilbert's arm slung itself around the violet-eyed male's waist and pulled him backwards, into Gilbert's chest.

"Just ignore it." He pleaded slightly, not willing to release the man who had _finally_ began accepting his advances and letting him work as he was supposed to. Roderich seemed to think about it; as he thought, the phone abruptly stopped ringing. Gilbert grinned tiredly and placed his head back on his propped up arm. "See? It was that- - -"

The phone went off again and Gilbert allowed his head to fall face-first into the pillow, muttering muffled obscenities. Roderich smiled down at him, patting his head slightly before getting out of the bed, locating a shirt before pulling it on (it was much too large for his small frame, and he knew almost instantly it belonged to Gilbert), and wandering down the hall into the living room, where the phone was ringing again.

As he did, Roderich found his thoughts wandering towards Gilbert, laying half-buried in the mass of blankets and pillows.

Maybe, he mused as he answered the phone, they could find a way to make this work out.

"Hello?"

"Roderich? Is everything all right? How's Gilbert? Why did you hang up on me last night? You weren't too hard on him, were you?" Roderich blinked slightly at the torrent if questions that attacked his ears as soon as he spoke.

"Elizabeta?" He asked slowly, rubbing his eyes with his free hand. "Slow down, please- - -one at a time!"

"I'm sorry." The Hungarian woman said breathlessly, making Roderich smile. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gilbert stumble into the room, not stopping until he was behind Roderich. The violet-eyed male rolled his eyes and leaned backwards, his head making contact with Gilbert's bare shoulder.

"It's fine, Elizabeta," Roderich murmured, and he felt Gilbert tense slightly behind him. "What is it you needed?"

"I just wanted to make sure everything's alright," Elizabeta replied as Gilbert's arms wrapped possessively around Roderich's waist. "You sounded a bit upset last night, when you hung up."

"I had things to sort out, and I needed the comfort that came from playing the piano is all." Roderich muttered, eyes closing- - -Gilbert was so warm, something that didn't surprise Roderich in the least- - -as he relaxed as much as he could.

The sudden need for contact with Gilbert startled Roderich- - -but he figured it was easily explained. After all, he had gone a long time with no one to do any of the things he had been doing with Gilbert lately; and besides that,Gilbert had been created for him, to be specifically his companion, and the mecha had- - -

Roderich's eyes flew open when two things registered suddenly: one, he hadn't referred to Gilbert as a mecha in a while, couldn't even remember the last time he used the word 'mecha', and two...

Well, Gilbert had hung up the phone with a sense of finality.

"Hey, Roderich?" Gilbert called out, even though the man he was addressing was in his arms. "Let's go out on a date."

"A date?" Roderich repeated, staring at the phone. "Where would we go?"

"I dunno," Gilbert shrugged, and Roderich felt the movement against his head. "Out."

"Isn't Elizabeta going to be mad you hung up on her?" Roderich asked, trying to think of a response. "She had concerns about us, you know."

"She'll live." Roderich rolled his eyes, but sighed nonetheless. "Well?"

"Fine, fine." Roderich pushed Gilbert away and stretched slightly. "When?"

"Now." Roderich stared at Gilbert with wide eyes, but before he could protest, Gilbert grabbed his arm and dragged him into the room.

* * *

><p>"Why are we at the park?" Roderich asked, looking around. The park was by his house, but it was different from any park he'd ever been to before. There was a trail, leading into trees, and passing picnic benches. Gilbert grinned owlishly at him, reaching down and grabbing Roderich's wrist.<p>

"Just follow me, all right?" Gilbert teased. "Don't get lost." Roderich flushed, but Gilbert tugged his arm and kept walking. Soon, the picnic benches were far behind them, and Roderich could hear the sound of running water. Blinking, Roderich looked around the trail, eyes widening slightly at the sight of all the trees around him.

"This is amazing." He breathed softly, slowing down as he walked the trail. Gilbert's hand slipped and ended up in Roderich's, which made Gilbert turn curiously.

"We're almost there." Gilbert promised, tightening his grip on Roderich's hand. Roderich nodded once, vaguely intertwining their fingers before moving onwards.

They reached a part of the path that diverged into two paths, and Gilbert lead Roderich down the path that went to their left; as they approached, a mass of trees went off the path.

"That's our spot." Gilbert said, pulling Roderich under a tree branch. "Watch your step- - -the ground's uneven, and there are branches everywhere." Roderich complied, keeping an eye on the floor and stepping carefully around the trees as he did so.

"Why- - -" Roderich stopped as he took in his surroundings. The trees didn't block out all the sunlight, so streams of sun were at various places in the clearing. The clearing, however, was completely surrounded by trees, cut off from the trail. It wasn't a grassy clearing, with flowers and whatnot, but it was a nice-looking and clean space among the trees.

"So, while you were teaching, I managed to get out and found the park." Gilbert explained, tugging slightly on the beanie he wore whenever he went outside nervously. "I ended up wandering around, and found this spot."

"It's great..." Roderich murmured. Gilbert grinned proudly before glancing around furtively.

When it appeared no one was any where near them, Gilbert took his chances and pulled Roderich against his chest; tilting the brunette's head up, Gilbert leaned down and pressed his lips firmly against Roderich's. In one part of him, he noted the different reactions Roderich had to how he kissed his master, saving it for later references in an almost detached manner. It was a small part, though, and the majority of him was noting on how good it felt having Roderich press back, his tongue entwining with Gilbert's own as Gilbert searched inside Roderich's mouth.

Roderich, for his part, kept his hands tightly gripping Gilbert's forearms as he was kissed senseless. Each time Gilbert kissed him left him wanting more and more, especially after last night. It was with disappointment on both sides that Gilbert finally pulled away, a smile on his face even as his forehead touched Roderich's.

"I brought food." Gilbert panted quietly. "Let's eat." Roderich allowed a small smile to cross his face before pulling away and helping Gilbert set up the food.

* * *

><p>"Should we call Roderich again and tell him?" Elizabeta worried her bottom lip between her teeth as she leaned against the edge of her desk, Kiku sitting in the chair beside her with a cup of tea in front of him. "Or keep quiet?"<p>

"I think this is not something that should be rushed, Elizabeta-san." Kiku said calmly, reaching for the tea and blowing at the steam to cool it. "After all, it has to be willing on both sides, and not something that should be done to prevent certain consequences."

"Gilbert will be crushed, though." Elizabeta groaned, uncrossing her arms and rubbing her face in frustration. "Why did you bring this up, Kiku?" Kiku sipped his tea as he thought of an appropriate way to word his thoughts and concerns.

"I am not worried about the company," he started slowly, "though I admit it had been taken into consideration. No, my concerns lie with Gilbert-san. He has devoted himself fully and utterly to one man who may or may not be able to reciprocate anything. And while Roderich-san may be making an effort now, it took far too long to get to this point. I fear the next point may take even longer, if it occurs at all." Kiku met Elizabeta's emerald eyes with worried dark ones; a worry that came from a father to his child, and Elizabeta sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "I don't want Gilbert-san to be waiting forever for one thing that may never happen."

"One more week." Elizabeta said finally, her eyes closed. "We'll give them one more week, and then we gather Gilbert and bring him back. Ok?" Kiku nodded once, his eyes returning to the desk as he continued sipping his tea.

'_Please_,' he thought, almost praying with the hope that filled his thoughts and body, '_prove me wrong, Gilbert-san. Please._'

* * *

><p>Filler-ish chapter. XD I feel as though things are moving slightly too fast, but, eh, whatever. XD I don't really care. <p>


	5. Chapter 5

Gilbert glowered so fiercely, not even Feliciano dared to approach him. The silver-haired mecha glared at the wall, his arms crossed stubbornly across his chest, not talking to anyone and turning a hate-filled glare towards anyone who dared to approach him. He knew his actions were causing confusion among the other mechas. Feliciano was whimpering and in tears all the time, worry for his 'role model' taking up most of his thoughts; Lovino cursed more than he usually did, though he was more worried about his brother, and how to comfort him; Arthur could be seen snapping at his faeries, the imaginary creatures having been spared the English mecha's horrible mouth and temper until now; Yao had a worried, sad look in his eyes, though when he sat by Gilbert he made no noise or any type of conversation; even Matthew, who was in a state of near-constant worry, was never seen without his bear clutched to his chest as tightly as possible, his face as pale as it could get and a worried look making lines around his eyes. Each one of them began having the same problem: they began to forget things, ranging from ordinary things to important things, and they all knew the reason for it.

The innate ability to know when one of their number was in trouble or some form of distress, and the want to do something about it.

However, Gilbert refused their help, secluding himself in the corner of the mecha room, where he had been for the past week. He knew what he was doing was causing pain to Elizabeta and Kiku, but for the first time, he couldn't bring himself to care. As far as he was concerned, it was their fault to begin with, and he couldn't bring himself to regret the way he had been acting.

He pressed his head into his hands, closing his eyes with a sigh.

"Roderich..."

One week earlier...

Gilbert stretched lazily, his eyes shut tightly as his tail wound slowly around Roderich's leg. In the days following their first date, Roderich had began slowly opening up to him more and more; Gilbert had free reign over any room in the house (except the kitchen- - -Roderich banned him from that when the Austrian male had been trying to cook dinner and Gilbert had come up behind him, wrapping his arms around the smaller man's waist and pressing small kisses on his neck while slipping his tail into Roderich's pants...needless to say, the food burned ad Roderich banned him from ever entering the kitchen), and it was no longer odd to find them side-by-side in Roderich's bed anymore.

The only thing that bothered Gilbert is that they still hadn't gone all the way, but he was able to push it back whenever Roderich accepted another kiss, another touch from Gilbert.

Roderich stirred beside him, and Gilbert smiled tiredly as his hand reached out from under the pillow and tangled itself in the mass of brown hair.

"Roderich..." He murmured, absentmindedly checking the clock to be sure the man wasn't running late. It was Friday, and on top of that, it was the Friday before a two-week long vacation. Roderich was busier with his job than ever, as after the break the students had a big test (Gilbert could remember Roderich explaining it to him, but in his mind it meant: Roderich could be his, completely and totally, during those two weeks, then he'd have to work harder than ever).

"Not now, Gilbert." Roderich sighed, still asleep. Rolling his eyes, Gilbert shoved the other slightly with his shoulder.

"You're going to be late." Roderich snuggled into the pillow. "It's already going to be eight-thirty." Roderich shot up with a startled gasp, violet eyes wide with shock.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" He scrambled to get up only to pause when he realized Gilbert was laughing at him. Blinking slowly, Roderich checked the clock then turned his eyes to the laughing male next to him. "Gilbert..." He murmured slowly, placing one arm on either side of his bedmate, which made Gilbert stop laughing and look at him with wide eyes. "It's barely six-fifteen..."

"Oops." Gilbert said, smirking. He reached up and, before Roderich had any time to react, pulled the violet eyed male down; their lips met, Gilbert moving his hands to tangle into Roderich's hair once more as he pushed his tongue into Roderich's mouth. Roderich made a muffled noise of protest, though his own eyes slipped shut and he pressed back.

When they pulled back for air, gasping, Roderich scowled down at Gilbert.

"I just woke up." Roderich scolded, his forearms resting by Gilbert's head.

"I don't care." Gilbert grinned up at him, pulling Roderich down to kiss him again. Roderich made a muffled sound as Gilbert tugged on a wayward curl of hair- - -which he nicknamed 'Mariazell', to Roderich's confusion- - -and shook his head, panting, as Gilbert let his hands slide down Roderich's back to rest on his waist.

"You are insane." Roderich said exasperatedly. Gilbert's grin widened as he slipped his hands under Roderich's pants, making the violet-eyed male gasp in surprise. "Gilbert!"

"Roderich!" Gilbert mimicked his tone before moving one hand up to Roderich's head again, bringing him down into another, softer kiss. Roderich sighed through his nose as Gilbert's tongue traced the inside of his mouth gently. "You have time." He said softly, kissing Roderich's neck and making the violet-eyed male's eyes slip shut. "I promise I won't make you late." Gilbert ran his hand down Roderich's back again, pushing the violet-eyed male's hips onto his own and making Roderich moan softly. "And if I do..." Gilbert licked his neck softly, making Roderich's breath catch. "Well, you can punish me later."

Roderich pulled away slightly, looking down at Gilbert. Crimson eyes stared up at him, mirroring a look Roderich knew was in his own eyes. Gilbert grinned up at him, his breath coming in small pants against Roderich's face. Glancing at the clock once more- - -it read 6:32- - -Roderich sighed and hung his head slightly in defeat.

"Fine." He murmured helplessly. Gilbert grinned even more, kissing Roderich again as he moved them together again. Roderich could feel himself getting harder with each clashing of their hips, and he groaned into Gilbert's mouth, feeling his breath beginning to come in small pants.

"Roderich..." Gilbert made small circles on Roderich's back as he trailed his hand down Roderich's sides and back, his other hand still pushing Roderich's hips.

"Ah..." Roderich felt his eyes shut again as Gilbert slipped his tail in between Roderich's legs, his hand moving to cup Roderich through his pants. "Gilbert..." Gilbert's tail probed inquiringly at Roderich's enterance, his hand moving on Roderich's erection. "Ahn~~~"

Gilbert flipped them over suddenly, Roderich gasping in surprise as his back suddenly hit the mattress. With his free hand, Gilbert tilted Roderich's head back to meet his eyes, crimson locking with violet. He leaned down and kissed Roderich again, his tongue meeting Roderich's and sucking on it gently, their hips still moving against one another's.

At the same time, his tail pushed past Roderich's entrance, making Roderich's eyes widen in surprise as he pushed himself onto it. His back arched, eyes widening as unexpected pleasure coursed through him.

"Ahn~!" Gilbert smirked, leaning down and kissing him again, muffling the other noises Roderich made.

"Is it ok, Roderich?" He asked breathlessly, his tail pushing deeper, smiling as he found Roderich's prostrate and made the other moan loudly, his back arching into Gilbert even more.

"Ah~~~~!" Roderich couldn't think straight- - -Gilbert's hand on his erection and his tail brushing against his prostrate made him unable to gather any of his thoughts. "Fine..." Gilbert's tail brushed against his prostrate again and he gasped. "Ah...again...Gilbert..." They were both panting hard, and Roderich placed his hands on Gilbert's shoulders, his grip tightening every time their hips connected or Gilbert's tail moved inside him.

"Roderich..." Gilbert panted, using his hand to trail down Roderich's stomach and lower his pants, kissing and sucking on Roderich's neck. Roderich groaned, his hand flying up to cup Gilbert's hair.

Gilbert's tail was removed, and Roderich surprised himself and Gilbert by letting out a moan of disappointment. Flushing a red that had nothing to do with their current activities, Roderich propped himself up on his elbows as Gilbert leaned up to press another kiss to Roderich's lips.

"This might hurt." He panted warningly; Roderich closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Gilbert's neck, placing his head in the crook of Gilbert's neck. Gilbert placed on hand on Roderich's shoulder, the other bracing himself on the bed.

Then he entered quickly, Roderich's startled yell muffled by the fact that he bit down as hard as he could on Gilbert's neck. Gilbert let out a drawn-out moan, falling onto his elbow as he pressed kisses all over Roderich's face and neck.

* * *

><p>Gilbert was sprawled on the couch in the living room, flipping the channels. His black beanie was on his head, and he glanced at the clock repeatedly to make sure he wouldn't be late. Roderich had allowing him to bring him lunch everyday, and he had a bag by the door with Roderich's lunch in it. He just had to wait until 12:15...<p>

And it was barely 11:42. Dammit.

Gilbert shook his head, returning his attention to the tv once more. Spanish novella...car commercial...a kids show about a hotel...some crime show...law and order...judge show...news station...back to the damn novella. As he continued switching channels, Gilbert resolved to get Roderich to join some sort of cable company. If he had to be stuck at home, he wanted something to watch. The doorbell rang in the middle of switching the channel from the kids show to the crime show and Gilbert, confused, stood up to answer it.

Yao smiled at him on the other side of the door. Gilbert, pulling on his beanie nervously, glanced down the hallway.

"What's up?" He asked as casually as he could, leaning against the doorway. Yao bowed at him and smiled apologetically. Gilbert tilted his head. "Yao?"

"My apologies- - -I cannot refuse direct orders." With that, Yao grabbed Gilbert's arm, pulling him towards the Asian mecha. Gilbert couldn't move, and his shock allowed Yao to reach behind his head, finding the switch on his ear and flipping it, effectively shutting Gilbert off. Gilbert's crimson eyes dimmed instantly, and he would have fallen to the floor had Yao not been in front of him to catch him.

* * *

><p>Roderich opened the door to his house, rubbing his eyes underneath his glasses.<p>

"I'm home." He called tiredly, unconsciously bracing himself (lately, Gilbert had taken to pinning him to the door, kissing him almost hungrily as he did so) for Gilbert. When nothing happened, Roderich moved his hand from his eyes and peered around the house curiously. "Gilbert?" Taking off his shoes, Roderich stepped into the house cautiously.

The house was quiet, almost chillingly so, and it made Roderich nervous. Looking around, he saw Gilbert's shoulder bag by the door, a pile of his own books on the table, the phone light blinking- - -

Roderich was at the phone so quickly, he wasn't even aware of him moving. The red light flashed ominously, almost as if it was daring Roderich to press it. For a moment, Roderich just stared at it curiously before deciding he was being stupid and pressed the 'check messages' button.

"You have -three- messages." The automatic voice started. "First message: 'Hello, Roderich-san.'" Roderich jumped slightly at the formal voice that called up at him. "'This is Honda Kiku. You and I have met once before. I am calling now to inform you that Gilbert-san had to be...well, recalled, for lack of a better term currently. Rest assured there is nothing wrong with Gilbert-san. However, I was not sure about you owning him when you have such...objections to him. As you are not allowing Gilbert-san to work as he should, I have decided it would be best on both sides to simply bring him back here and give you a full refund. I apologize for any of the time you must feel to have been wasted with him, and I thank you for your cooperation. Good day, Roderich-san.' -beep-"

Roderich stared, wide-eyed, at the machine before him. As he did, the second message started.

"Second message: '- - -ND ME BACK!' 'Gilbert, stop- - -' 'I WANT TO GO BACK- - -RODERICH!' 'Gilbert-san, _please_- - -' 'YOU CAN'T DO THIS! SEND ME BACK! RODERICH!' -beep-" The violet-eyed male closed his eyes with a sigh, rubbing them once more under his glasses.

"Third message: 'Hi...um..hi.'" Roderich started at the unfamiliar voice that echoed in the room. "'You don't- - -I mean, uh, th-this is Matthew. I'm a-a friend, eh? Of Gilbert's I mean. And, uh, well- - -hey!' 'You suck at this. Hey!'" Another voice, even louder than before, came on. "'You. Whatever-the-hell-your-name-is. You need to come get Gilbert. He's throwing this huge-ass fit that's completely unnecessary. It's freaking us all out. And since this is your fault- - -hey! Dammit, I wasn't done!' '...hello...'" Roderich blinked as yet another voice came on. "'...Gilbert wants you...you should come get him...' 'Ignore them. Just listen to what they say, and come get Gilbert. That was not a contradictory statement, Saephi, ok?' 'Is this Roderich? Veeee, come get him! Gilbert's so sad, and-and I know Roderich could help him! Please come get him...'" A distant voice came on. "'What are you all doing, aru?' 'Shit, hang it up hang it up!' -beep-" With that hissed order, the message ended. 


	6. Chapter 6

Gilbert blinked slowly as Feliciano sat beside him unsurely.

"Veee..." He murmured sadly. "Are you all right, Gilbert?" Gilbert shrugged, returning his gaze to the wall. There was a few more seconds of silence. "You know, the second day you were here...Kiku took you somewhere. What did he do?" Gilbert snorted slightly, but shrugged. Feliciano bit his lip, a habit he had picked up from Elizabeta, before standing fully. "I'm sorry, Gilbert."

"For what?" Gilbert asked, his voice slightly mechanical from a week of disuse. Feliciano jumped, his hands wringing nervously.

"Ve, for-for, um...we-well," The Italian mecha scrambled for his words. Gilbert watched him with a raised eyebrow before looking away with a sigh.

"So you won't tell me either." He murmured softly. "Why won't anyone mention it?"

"Won't it hurt you?" Feliciano finally latched onto something to say. "And, besides..."

"I want to know, though." Gilbert sighed again. "Roderich..."

* * *

><p>Roderich had his hands on Elizabeta's desk firmly, violet eyes narrowed in anger. In the back of his mind, he noted how different he was each time he was behind the piece of wood. Currently, though, the rest of his mind was focused on one thing.<p>

"I want him back, Elizabeta." He said, his voice as firm as the hands on her desk. "I don't want to be here every day anymore. I want Gilbert." Elizabeta sighed, rubbing her eyes, her elbows on the desk.

"I know, Roderich." She replied. "But I'm afraid that isn't possible. We cannot just- - -I mean, we could, but- - -"

"Then why don't you?" Roderich asked curiously. Elizabeta hesitated, then sighed and pressed the intercom on her desk.

"Boss to Yao."

_"Yea, Boss?"_

"Bring me Gilbert." There was silence on the other end.

_"Are you sure?"_

"Yes." Elizabeta leaned back on her chair and sighed heavily. "Don't be too surprised, Roderich. We had to."

"Had to what?" Roderich asked. Elizabeta didn't answer; a few minutes later, Yao walked in, Gilbert's wrist in his hand.

"Gilbert, Boss." He bowed slightly and, with a small glance at Roderich, the Asian mecha left. There was silence in the office; Elizabeta had her hand rubbing at her eyes, Roderich looking curiously between Gilbert and Elizabeta.

Gilbert stood at her desk, his arms crossed over his chest and his crimson eyes glaring angrily at Elizabeta.

"What do you want?" Roderich jumped at the anger lacing Gilbert's voice and looked at the other curiously- - -he had never heard Gilbert sound like that before.

"This is Roderich Edelstein." Elizabeta said calmly, sitting up straighter in her desk and looking at Gilbert with a metallic glint in her eye- - -almost as if she were one of her beloved mechas.

"Is that supposed to mean something?" Gilbert snapped back, eyeing the man out of the corner of his eye.

He was slightly shorter than the silver-haired male, Gilbert noted, with deep brown hair and wide violet eyes. This...Roderich...wore black pants and a blue coat buttoned up to his chin. He was staring at Gilbert unabashedly, and despite the confusion that dominated his face, Gilbert could see small glimpses of other feelings- - -happiness...relief...love.

In the back of his mind, something jolted painfully.

Roderich, on the other hand, was having slight difficulty with what had just left the mecha's mouth.

"What did you do?" He hissed angrily, whirling to face Elizabeta. The Hungarian woman had begun rubbing her temples, and she did not stop when she answered Roderich's question.

"We did what we had to." She said with a deep sigh. "He was determined as all hell to get back to you, in any way. He was screaming for you, trying various methods of escape plans- - -he hit Yao and two of my other mechas in a furious attempt to leave. Twice- - -at least. It was upsetting, not only to the others, but to Kiku and myself as well. None of our mechas had ever malfunctioned like Gilbert had been malfunctioning- - -"

"I WAS NOT _MALFUNCTIONING_!" Gilbert roared suddenly, making both of them jump. His crimson eyes were burning in a pure, unadulterated anger that made Roderich's own eyes widen in shock and slight fear, though he ignored the other male in favor of having a stare down with his creator and 'mother figure'. "Don't you accuse me of that!"

"You had _no_ reason to be behaving the way you were!" Elizabeta snapped back, standing and pushing her chair back with a loud screech against the floor below it. "You were acting in a way none of the others had been acting in before! Kiku and I could only assume you had somehow obtained a virus, and the only way to take care of it was to wipe your hard drive!"

"What does that mean?" Roderich cut in suddenly, something similar to dread filling his stomach. "Elizabeta?"

The woman looked down at her desk dejectedly.

"We cleaned his memory files." She said softly, a complete opposite tone in her voice as she addressed her childhood friend. "He has no memory of ever leaving HQ."

For a moment, there was a dead silence. Not even Gilbert moved, his arms crossed stubbornly as he glared at the wall. Elizabeta continued to stare down at her desk, not willing or able to look Roderich in the eye as he absorbed the information given to him.

Roderich felt his breath shorten, coming in slightly quicker gasps than he was used to at the news. If Gilbert couldn't remember...

"Why?" Roderich asked shakily, his fists clenching in uncharacteristic anger. "Why would you do that?" Elizabeta opened her mouth but Roderich cut across her. "After all that...and when I _finally_ got used to him..." Gilbert was looking at him curiously now, his head turned to look at Roderich fully with a blank stare.

"Roderich, I'm sorry." Elizabeta murmured, standing up and reaching for the male's arm. "I'm so sorry; please understand- - -"

"What if one of your mechas starts acting like this again?" Roderich asked, violet eyes narrowed as he backed up just out of Elizabeta's reach. "Is that going to be your only solution?" Elizabeta's jaw dropped, but Roderich whirled around to leave; Gilbert stood in front of the door, arms spread out to keep him from leaving.

Crimson eyes locked with violet, and for a moment time seemed to stand still. There was Gilbert, a black t-shirt with a white gas mask on it and baggy black jean shorts, his silver hair falling slightly into his eyes as they stared determinedly into Roderich's. And there was Roderich, standing tall despite what he had just learned, his violet eyes dulling slightly a little more the longer he stared at the mechanical being he had once owned.

"Who are you?" Gilbert asked slowly, blinking slowly in confusion.

It was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back; the so-called final nail in the coffin.

Roderich closed his eyes and shook his head in response, moving up to Gilbert and pressing a final, chaste kiss to the mecha's mouth. Glancing once more at Elizabeta with a look that read 'this is not over', Roderich moved around Gilbert and left, the door closing behind him with an audible 'click'.

"That could have gone better." Elizabeta sighed softly, rubbing her temples. When her office remained silent, she looked up- - -and frowned, worry replacing her weariness. "Gilbert?"

The mecha stood by the door, his arms limp by his sides as his eyes stared ahead of him blankly. Every now and then, he would twitch, from his hand moving minutely to his entire head jerking to the side violently. His eyes, though staring blankly, had what looked to be data streaming across them, far too small and fast for Elizabeta to see, but at a size and speed Gilbert could understand. He didn't seem to be hearing Elizabeta's frantic calls, though his whole body would shudder when his name was called.

And when Elizabeta stood in front of him, her emerald eyes worried as she tried to get Gilbert's attention, his head twitched harshly- - -

Revealing a vibrant, mouth-shaped mark in the space between his neck and shoulder.

Elizabeta's eyes widened in shock, her efforts of gaining Gilbert's attention stopped as she stared at what could only be classified as a love bite.

The door opened behind Gilbert, and Matthew stuck his head in.

"Hi, Boss." He stammered. When Elizabeta motioned for him to come in, he entered hesitantly. "U-Uh...um..." His eyes narrowed slightly as he tried to remember his reason for being in the office, a pale hand reaching for Gilbert and settling directly over the mark almost unconsciously. "I-I-I was...I mean, you're needed...u-um, well, I think..."

"Describe them, Matthew." Elizabeta said breathlessly, Matthew giving her a grateful look. She didn't notice, her mind rushing to find a connection between the bite on Gilbert's neck and his almost malfunctioning behavior.

"W-Well..." Matthew thought hard. "Um, short, yea? W-With dark hair- - -uh, short- - -a-and he, uh, he works on us...?" Matthew trailed off, looking at Elizabeta unsurely even as she breathed a sigh of relief; Kiku, just the person she wanted to see.

"That's Kiku, Matthew." She said gently, with a slight tone that told of how many times she had reminded him and the others the names of the people they lived with. Matthew made a face of comprehension and nodded once, storing the information in his memory even as he knew he would forget it again. He glanced at Gilbert, realizing belatedly the space where he had placed his hand was marked strangely.

"Eh?" He pressed down on it curiously, feeling the indentations in Gilbert's neck. "What's this?" Moving to stand in front of Gilbert, Matthew moved his hand to peer curiously at the mark. "It looks like...teeth...right?" He asked, frowning slightly. "But, who would bite Gilbert, eh? Un-Unless- - -"

"Tell Kiku I'll be right there!" Elizabeta shouted suddenly, pushing Matthew out. "Ok, hon?"

"Yea, Boss," Matthew stammered, trying to look over his shoulder at Gilbert. "But what about Gilbert's shoulder?"

"Actually," Elizabeta said, flushing slightly. "Why don't you show me where he is?" As Matthew continued to stammer unsurely, Elizabeta shut the door to her office firmly, taking up Matthew's arm in her other hand and dragging him down the hallway.

* * *

><p>Roderich sighed as he leaned against his front door, his glasses in his left hand as his right rubbed his temples. Closing his eyes against his dark, empty house, Roderich allowed the sudden, unfortunately familiar silence to admit to himself one of the things he had not wanted to say in front of Elizabeta.<p>

He missed Gilbert.

The first couple of days without him had been odd for Roderich. He had gotten so used to Gilbert greeting him and seeing him off. Bringing him his lunches everyday. Sleeping with him (in an innocent sense, honestly). Just...being there with Roderich.

And even now, now that Roderich was more used to it, he still thought he'd open the door one day and Gilbert would greet him from in front of the television. Or he'd wake up and Gilbert would be sleeping in that strangely human way he had, arms buried under the pillow as his eyes darted around under closed eyelids.

It was nearly enough to drive him crazy.

Shaking his head, Roderich pushed himself off of his door and down the hall, passing by the kitchen and his room in favor of his piano room; seating himself on the bench, Roderich placed his fingers on the keys and, after a slight hesitation, drowned out the apartment with his morose emotions.

For now, he would sort out the numbness that settled in him shortly after leaving Elizabeta's office. The empty feeling of knowing that no matter how hard he tried, Gilbert would never be the same because he had been reset, for lack of a better word, and everything about Roderich had been wiped clean from the mecha. Though Roderich felt slightly relieved that the first week of him having Gilbert was gone (because, even then, he could admit to himself that he was being downright horrible to Gilbert), it upset him that the better week of the mecha being with him was gone (and had it really only been three weeks ago he had gotten Gilbert anyway?).

In the background, the phone rang; Roderich, still lost in his thoughts and music, didn't hear it.

He continued playing, the melancholy tune beginning to be replaced with something slightly more cheerful, more hopeful, more optimistic; after all, Roderich could be stubborn when he wanted to. And there was always a tomorrow to regain Gilbert. Roderich was sure that eventually, Elizabeta would have to see things his way and just allow Gilbert to come back with him, memories gone or not. He could always build better memories with Gilbert (and now he sounded like a sixteen year old girl, so he was going to shut his mind off and just focus on the piano).

After all, Gilbert would still be the same without his memories; Roderich was sure of it.

* * *

><p>"I know what's wrong with Gilbert!" Matthew cried excitedly, throwing the door to the mecha room open and startling everyone in there. Arthur turned from where he had been arguing heatedly with the corner of the room, Yao tilting his head to the side in confusion as Feliciano jumped up and exclaimed something in Italian, clapping his hands happily. Lovino snorted but stood as well, and Heracles looked up sleepily from where he had been napping.<p>

"What...?" He mumbled almost incoherently. Matthew ignored him in favor of addressing everyone, his knowledge of how to help Gilbert taking over his usually shy and almost invisible nature.

"It's because of Roderich!" Before Matthew could get anything else out, Lovino snorted again.

"We knew that already!" He yelled back. Matthew made a frustrated noise in the back of his throat, his tail drooping slightly and ears pressing against his head.

"Let's just listen to Matthew, aru." Yao said, placing a calming hand on Lovino's shoulder. "Continue, please." Matthew nodded firmly.

"I went to talk to Boss earlier, because I needed to bring her to someone, and she was with Gilbert." Matthew nodded at Arthur's raised eyebrow, excitement filling his small body. "I'm not too sure what they were talking about, but Gilbert seemed upset, so I put my hand on his shoulder, and-and-and!" Matthew shook his head slightly- - -it felt like something was messing with his vocals, reducing him to a stuttering mass of technology even as he tried to tell everyone what he found. "I f-f-fe-felt this m-m-ma-mar-mar-mark!"

Before he could say anything else, he dropped his ever-present polar bear; he was still talking, but speaking at a speed so fast they barely understood him. All the mechas froze, staring at Matthew in shock and surprise. Matthew let out a shuddering gasp, eyes and fingers twitching almost madly.

His eyes dimmed suddenly, and as he shut off he fell gracefully; Yao was the first to move, catching Matthew easily before the younger mecha hit the floor.

"What the fuck?" Lovino snarled, though there was a frightened undertone in his words. Feliciano seemed to snap out of his stunned stupor and began wailing loudly, clutching his brother in fear. Heracles' eyes were wide and alert, a first for the usually sleeping mecha, and Arthur had his arm out awkwardly, almost as if he was holding something to keep himself steady.

"Too much excitement for him, aru." Yao said softly as Matthew's eyes began to slowly light up again. "He had to restart himself." Matthew sat up slowly, blinking around slowly, his face emotionless. After a few seconds, his head twitched once and his entire body shuddered.

"Eh?" He said calmly, looking around. "What happened?"

"You had to restart." Yao said gently, Feliciano's sobs quieting down. "How are you feeling, aru?" Matthew groaned and rubbed his head.

"Roderich bit Gilbert." Matthew said, a more controlled excitement filling his eyes as he remembered what he had been trying to say. "He's got a bite mark right here," Matthew pointed, "and Elizabeta won't let me talk about it with her."

"That doesn't necessarily mean- - -" Yao was cut off by the door opening, Elizabeta looking tired.

"Feliciano and Heracles, come with me please." Slightly stunned, Feliciano cast a fearful glance at Lovino before obeying. Heracles stood slowly, his eyes reusing their half-closed position as he yawned heavily with the motion.

As they approached, Elizabeta checked their necks and shoulders before nodding once and leading them out of the room. Yao sighed. Matthew blinked twice. Lovino crossed his arms, grumbling under his breath.

"What on earth is going on?" Arthur growled out, hands in his hair.

* * *

><p>Ah, who slightly panicked when Mattie shut off? XD haha sorry sorry. Anyway, thanks for waiting and reading! XD <p>


	7. Chapter 7

Quick warning: major out-of-character-ness. Also, slightly important note at the end.

* * *

><p>Kiku looked up as Elizabeta burst into his office breathlessly, her vivid green eyes wide and slightly panicked.<p>

"Kiku, did you see Gilbert's shoulder at any point after we had taken him?" She asked; the question was out of her mouth so quickly Kiku actually had to think about it carefully and slowly before he could respond.

"I had not, as I did not run a full examination on him." He said slowly, placing his current project down gently on the table next to him. "But I will assume there was something of significance on Gilbert-san's shoulder that should have been brought to our attention immediately." When Elizabeta nodded frantically, Kiku felt his heart sink. "What was it, Elizabeta-san?" He asked slowly, though he had a feeling he knew what it was.

"A love bite." Kiku closed his dark eyes as his suspicions were confirmed and let out a long sigh.

"Which means that Gilbert-san and Roderich-san had done something in that manner." He murmured, his hands placed together at the fingertips. "Do we know if there is any correlation to the love bite and the way Gilbert-san had been acting when I had switched him on?" Elizabeta shrugged helplessly and Kiku was silent for a few moments, thinking. "Get Feliciano-san and Heracles-san."

"Kiku...?" Elizabeta questioned softly, blinking curiously. Kiku met her gaze evenly.

"They are the only two in use so far, aside from Gilbert-san. We can assume that Ludwig-san has used Feliciano-san to his full potential." Kiku's face flushed lightly as he continued. "And I can assure you that Heracles-san has been used on several occasions as well." Elizabeta smiled slightly and Kiku cleared his throat pointedly. "We shall lock them in separate rooms and gauge their reactions to not seeing their masters again. If there is any similarities to how Gilbert-san had been acting..."

"Then he would have definitely been used properly." Elizabeta nodded, seeing Kiku's logic before doing as she was told.

* * *

><p>Elizabeta sat just outside of Heracles' room, eyes closed as she listened to the mecha pace around.<p>

He had been like that almost as soon as she locked him in there, almost as if he knew his reason for being in the room even though Elizabeta made sure not to mention it to him just yet.

The pacing stopped suddenly and Elizabeta looked up.

"Boss...?" Came quietly from the other side. "Boss, what's...going on?" Elizabeta blinked, but answered anyway.

"I put you in here while Kiku packs." She said, looking down at the paper where Kiku had written what she was going to tell Heracles should he ask why he was locked in a room. "He has decided that he no longer wants to work here, and has made a decision to go back to his family in Japan." There was silence on the other side of the door.

"Am I to be going as well?" Elizabeta blinked again at the tone in Heracles' voice, noting that he sounded much more awake as he spoke.

"..." She hesitated slightly, before closing her eyes and forcing it out. "...No." Biting her lip, Elizabeta winced at the loud noise that came as a result of Heracles hitting the door.

"Why?" He asked, an almost frantic tone in his voice. Elizabeta gaped silently, though Heracles couldn't see her, and tried to come up with an answer for him.

On the other side of the door, Heracles' mind was working frantically, going through his memory banks and pulling up everything with him and the Asian mechanic, trying to find what he might have done wrong to lead to the situation he found himself in. Everything, it seemed, from the moment his eyes opened to see the smaller male, to when Kiku had shyly kissed him one night, to the day before when Kiku had his head resting on the mecha's stomach as he thought of a way to fix Gilbert, had been going perfectly well. Kiku hadn't made anything seem out of place at all, and that only served to make him more frantic.

"I need- - -" He jumped slightly, not used to the feelings coursing through him. "I- - -let me see him, Boss, _please_..." Heracles could feel his breath coming in gasps, and he hit the door once more, both his hands smacking loudly against one of the few things blocking him from his master, flattening as he pushed all his weight against them. "Let me out!"

"I can't..." Elizabeta's voice came from the opposite side of the door, weak and tear-filled- - -a complete opposite of the normally cheerful, outgoing woman she was.

That cemented everything for Heracles- - -his master, one Honda Kiku, was leaving. And he, for whatever unknown reason, was bring left behind.

Letting out a desperate, animalistic cry that was completely unlike the normally sleepy mecha, Heracles fisted his hands and began pounding nonstop against the door. Random words and images flashed through his mind; images of himself and Kiku, words and sentences that held an important meaning to the creation but (evidently) not to the creator. He felt his eyes inexplicably fill with something, and his head twitched slightly. Heracles ignored everything, though, focused in his attempts to get out of the room he was confined in and back to Kiku.

And for the first time, he understood how Gilbert felt when he woke and realized he was in the same prison Heracles was trapped in. Heracles felt the same 'malfunctioning' qualities Gilbert had the first two days making his system short-circuit. While he knew that continuing in his overly emotional state would only cause him to have to restart his system (if only because he wasn't used to feeling so strongly- - -being asleep a good portion of every day had somehow stunted his emotional growth in a way that was startling to Heracles, had he the ability to recognize it), he couldn't bring himself to calm from his panicked state, relentlessly pounding at the door that seemed to taunt him by holding him in the room and yelling something in a language he couldn't remember Kiku downloading into him.

His words started coming at a pace too fast for anyone to understand, even himself, and he was dimly aware of his system overloading. Feeling his body twitch erratically, Heracles pounded on the door a few more times, each one with slightly less force than the last, until his eyes dimmed and he dropped gracelessly onto the floor.

On the other side of the door, Elizabeta clutched onto her clipboard, tears pouring down her face at an alarming rate. Her shoulders shook with her efforts to keep her cries silent, and she would gasp shudderingly for breath every few moments. She had known it would hurt her when Heracles reacted, but she hadn't been aware of how _painful_ it would be for her to hear how...how heartbroken he would sound. Gasping soundlessly, Elizabeta used the wall behind her to stand properly, relying on it to provide the support her legs wouldn't.

"I'm sorry..." She choked out in a whisper, unsure if she was apologizing to Gilbert or Heracles- - -in the back of her mind, she decided it was to both; for ripping Gilbert away from someone who had (clearly) loved him and for lying to Heracles for an experiment. "I'm so sorry...oh, god..."

* * *

><p>In a completely different part of the company, Kiku was having a similar issue with Feliciano.<p>

"Let me go!" The Italian mecha cried, struggling violently in Kiku's arms. "I beg of you- - -Ludwig! Ludwig! si prega di Ludwig venire salvami!" Kiku grunted lightly as a flailing arm hit his face, and a knee managed to somehow catch his stomach; while Feliciano wasn't a fighter-mecha by design, the fact remained that the boy had a metal skeleton and with the reckless way he had been throwing his body, Kiku was sure that he would have more bruises on his body than necessary.

"Feliciano-san..." He tried, but the boy ignored him in favor of letting a long, drawn out mixture of a tearful wail and furious war-cry out of his mouth (it sounded odd on the cheerful boy- - -not the wail, but the war-cry). Feliciano renewed his efforts to get away- - -unlike Heracles, the boy was used to feeling high amounts of energy and feeling, making it less likely he would short-circuit any time soon.

As Italian and German began to mix together with his speech, Kiku decided he had more than enough evidence for Gilbert's behavior; touching Feliciano's ear, he flipped the switch and the mecha fell uselessly into his lap, pain-filled amber eyes dulling. Wincing slightly as he lay Feliciano gently on the floor, Kiku stood and called Ludwig into the room.

The German man came instantly; he looked curiously from the shut off mecha on the floor to the seemingly battle-worn creator, but didn't ask any questions.

"I am giving you the next few days off." Kiku murmured tiredly, rubbing his eyes with one hand. They had only been an hour, at the most, and he hoped desperately that Elizabeta was done- - -if Heracles was acting the way Feliciano and Gilbert was, then he was needed to calm him down. "Take Feliciano-san with you." As Ludwig picked up Feliciano easily, Kiku hesitantly placed a hand on his arm. "Don't wake him until you are at your home, understand?" Ludwig nodded once, and Kiku sighed. "We needed him for an experiment. He is going to be frantic and panicky when he wakes up. Be careful, Ludwig-san."

* * *

><p>"I feel as though I am at fault." He admitted quietly later. Elizabeta sat beside him, sniffling every now and then. When Kiku found her, she had been a wreck; she had been shaking violently, almost as if she was going to shut down. It had taken a while to calm her down, and Kiku had shut Heracles off as she did. They sat together in his office, in silence until Kiku broke it. "I should have been more thorough in my checking, and I should have noticed something so obviously out of place before I turned him back on." Elizabeta sighed shakily.<p>

"Roderich came back today." She said finally, her voice catching slightly in her throat. Kiku's eyes snapped open and he gazed at her questioningly. "I let him see Gilbert, and..." Elizabeta smiled helplessly and shrugged. "It could have ended better, I suppose. But he kissed Gilbert, and he just froze. It was so strange." Kiku looked up at the ceiling and sighed.

"Gilbert-san is still in your office, correct?" At Elizabeta's nod, Kiku stood up and cracked his knuckles. "I had erased Gilbert-san's memories, but I made a copy and placed it in my computer; I shall see if I can transfer the data to him while I do another check-up. At the same time," He continued, looking directly at Elizabeta. "You should call Roderich-san and inform him of our error; mention that he will have Gilbert-san returned to him shortly." When Elizabeta looked up at him, Kiku smiled slightly, albeit painfully and regretfully. "If Roderich-san still wants him, that is."

"He wants him." Elizabeta laughed humorlessly. "Trust me, he wants him." Kiku nodded once and, checking the time- - -barely seven-fifteen, despite the day seeming endlessly long and tiring- - -he went to his computer to retrieve Gilbert's memories.

* * *

><p>Well. Um...this seemed like a depressing and out of place chapter. Honestly, this was much...sadder chapter than I was going for. Yea. I'm not too sure I like this chapter much. not only was it slightly depressing, I just don't think it was a good chapter at all. It's just...a horrible chapter. XD ah well.<p>

Any way, I dunno if any of you check my profile (I doubt it- - -it's a dreadfully boring place, my profile), but on the off chance any of you care, there's a poll for my next mecha-human coupling story. It's probably only going to be a one-shot (most likely a one-shot), but if you want to cast a vote, I'd greatly appreciate it. XD yea. Thanks! 


	8. Authors note that will be deleted

Sorry guys, but this isn't an official update.

Ok so a few of you have brought to my attention that my poll wasn't working. (ok the first time was a hint but I thought it was a fluke) anyway, I'll try to see if I can fix it. Until then, please feel free to send your votes to me via PM or (as I do take anonymous reviews) review. Remember, two couples only please! XD your choices are:

Alfred and Arthur

Ludwig and Feliciano

Kiku and Heracles

Antonio and Lovino

Francis and Matthew

Ivan and Yao

Thank you all for the reviews, favorite story/author alerts, and all your support and love for my story and whatnot. XD 


	9. Chapter 8

So, for what few people I'm sure are still reading this, here is the new chapter for Heart and Soul. XD I'm sorry it took me basically forever to update, but I couldn't seem to make myself happy with this chapter no matter how many times I edited it. This is the absolute final product, as I refused to allow myself to do anymore changes and just post it.

For those of you who've read and hadn't posted yet, anonymous or not, poll's still open. XD for any interested, USUK leads for next one-shot. Hopefully that won't take as long to come out. XD

Anyway, since you guys don't really want to read about me, continue on to the story! XD

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><p>Kiku was sitting at his computer, searching through the many files he had for Gilbert's missing memories; he had created a backup file when he had first shut the mecha down, but it felt like had been quite some time- - -months instead of days, years in place of weeks- - -and he couldn't recall where he had placed them on his computer. He was scrolling through all the data the Asian had on the entire mecha corporation when the repetitive noise of someone running reached his ears. Turning to face the door curiously, he watched it as it flew open and hit the wall behind it, creating a slightly larger than normal dent, before returning his gaze to what it revealed: a frantic, bordering hysterical Elizabeta. Her hair was slightly tangled at the bottom, her normally joyful eyes wide with fear and surprise despite being red and puffy from crying.<p>"He's gone!" She cried, her voice horrified and bordering hysterical as well. "Oh, my god, what are we going to do, I don't know where he is and- - -" Kiku had opened his mouth to interrupt her, his chair swiveling around to face the woman fully; however, before he could say one word, Elizabeta all but sank against the doorframe, her eyes widening more. "Oh, Roderich! Roderich, he's most likely going to come back tomorrow for Gilbert, and- - -"

"Elizabeta-san!" Kiku finally said loudly, having stood and bolted to his boss; he placed his hands on the sides of her face, and their warmth seemed to have the desired effect. She stopped talking, her breath coming in small, frantic gasps, but she calmed down enough to stop her rambling. Their eyes met, and Kiku smiled understandingly, softly. "It seems today's events have taken their toll on you, Elizabeta-san. Perhaps you should retire for the night." It was more than a suggestion, and Elizabeta shook her head at the tone he spoke to her in.

"What about Gilbert?" She asked wearily, her breathing evening out. "And Roderich?"

"I'll take care of everything." The mechanic assured her gently, placing his hands on her waist and turning her slowly. "Now, please go home. Rest." Reluctantly, Elizabeta did as she was told, making Kiku's smile widen just a bit.

When she was gone, he sighed heavily and ran a hand down his face; glancing once at the still shut off Heracles on the couch in his office, Kiku quietly closed the door to his office and began searching the company building searching for places Gilbert might have gone and hidden.

* * *

><p>Gilbert was starting to think this was a bad idea.<p>He was standing next to a crosswalk, waiting for the light to change, having absolutely no real idea as to where he was going. It was late, in fact it was getting dark, and he was wearing nothing more than what he had been wearing at HQ (well, other than the black beanie Yao had so kindly given him to hide his very obvious mecha ears).

He had stopped at a pay phone earlier; pressing a bunch of random numbers that seemed vaguely familiar to him, he had waited as the phone rang and rang...and continued to ring. Two seconds before it went into voicemail, he had hung up and started walking again.

He thought again of what he knew and what Yao had told him.

The man from Elizabeta's office was named Roderich Edelstein. Yao told him that the man was an old acquaintance of the boss (Gilbert personally thought the brunette acted more like an old friend, or an old lover pleasantly parted with). Evidently, Roderich had ordered a mecha that looked exactly what he thought Elizabeta would look like now and somehow ended up with him. Gilbert had stayed with him for a while, and seemed to enjoy it; of course, in a misguided attempt to keep everyone happy in some form or another, Yao was sent to shut Gilbert down and bring him back to the company (the tall Asian mecha admitted this with lowered eyes and a shameful air around him; he also apologized repeatedly for blindly following the orders of their mechanic. Gilbert dismissed the taller mecha's apologies with an uncaring shrug of his shoulders. It wasn't Yao's fault; his guilt was unnecessary).

What Yao couldn't explain was the bite mark on Gilbert's shoulder, or the reason he had gone haywire to begin with. While he obviously had some form of an idea, he wouldn't say one thing about it to the silver haired mecha. Instead, with a mischievous smile, he had spouted off the location of an address, an apartment complex where Roderich lived, listed several landmarks, all but shoved the black beanie on his head, and sent Gilbert on his way.

Which lead him to his current location: a park filled with trees, right by the apartment complex Yao had sworn up and down was there.

With a scowl, Gilbert tugged on his beanie, making sure it firmly covered his head, and walked into the park. There was a slight pain in the back of his head, a continuous meshing of gears that had started as soon as he'd left, but he ignored it just as firmly as he had ignored everything else that had to do with the information Yao had given him, the expression on the face of the man who had kissed him in Elizabeta's office, and the name 'Roderich Edelstein'.

He scowled deeper as he followed the walkway before him, his hands shoved firmly in his pockets and his head kept down. That man who had kissed him, that Roderich, he did something to Gilbert's hardwired brain. The mecha wasn't quite sure just what he did, but Gilbert knew it was something important. There was something in his hardware that struggled to remember what it was he evidently forgotten or had erased; the continued repeated attempts at recreating the data was creating a dull burn in the back of his head and Gilbert was sure that, should anyone touch a particular spot back there, the 'skin' under his silver hair would be warm, almost hot, from the constant whirring in his mind.

It annoyed him to no end that he couldn't remember.

He stumbled upon a clearing suddenly- - -he hadn't realized he'd been walking off the path until he nearly tripped over a tree root. Reaching a hand out to steady himself, Gilbert tilted his head up, his dark crimson eyes catching a ray of sunlight and- - -

- - -_and looking around in awe at the suddenly exposed land, the light filtering through making it look almost like something out of a fucking romance movie (something he'd scoff at, sure, but surely something Roderich would appreciate, right?), he'd **have** to bring Roderich out here when he could_- - -

Gilbert gasped slightly as something seared itself across his brain, leaving behind a burn and more heated metal. His hands covered his head, just under his hat by his ears, his crimson eyes wide and unblinking. Numbers that held the code for the images flew across his mind- - -

- - -_waiting, waiting, waiting, damn! What time did this guy get home? He was a teacher at a high school; surely he was finished with work a few hours after his students, right? It was almost seven-fifty...

Wait, the door! That could be him, and he'd be waiting for his new master the way he was supposed to.

The door opened slowly, and he stood in front of it, arms wide open and smiling brightly ("Welcome home, Roderich!") before the door was slammed shut in his face_- - -

"Whoa!" Gilbert leaned against the nearest tree, his forehead making his fingertips burn as well- - -

- - -_waiting, waiting, again, why do classes take forever? God, Roderich could have been home so much sooner, making his delicious whatever it was he cooked when he was stressed; he seemed stressed lately, and from what Gilbert could tell, it was either cause of him or something the Boss did_- - -

He moved jerkily, without warning, heading for the entrance to the park as image after image cramped and forced itself into the front of his head; Gilbert was so focused on the supposed memory data that was currently flashing images in front of his eyes (were these _his_memories? He didn't recall anything after a conversation with Matthew and Yao, something about being fine while he was being patched up; come to think of it, he couldn't recall why he'd needed to be patched up in the first place, unless it was because _Roderich didn't want him, so he'll make it so that Roderich could get the mecha he wanted; best way to do that was damage to the product, so what could cause the most damage to this product, his body? Knives, perhaps, or scissors. Ignore the pain sensory Kiku downloaded for him, bite your lip and just- - -SHIT, like that, that's good, fuck that hurts_), he didn't notice when he left that park, shaking so much he was vibrating as he pushed his way into the apartment complex. Ignoring people's startled cries and questions, Gilbert didn't stop until he stood in front of a wooden door- - -

- - -_hands running all over him, his hands trailing patterns on the other; there were gasps of pleasure, blunt nails pressing down on his back, warm breath on his throat; a unbroken mantra underneath it all, the mecha in him happily chanting **Master's agreed, Master's letting me do this, it's finally happened**; a flash of violet eyes, the pained pleasure of being bitten_- - -

Gilbert's whole body shook a few times more before he abruptly stopped, the burning in his head providing too much heat to the hardware underneath it to continue functioning properly. His wide eyes dulled completely, turning from vibrant crimson to muted ruby, and he collapsed, his entire body falling forward and crashing into the door with a noise loud enough to alert the entire hallway.

* * *

><p>Roderich jumped when a sudden crash echoed in the room; he had just finished yet another piano piece and had been thinking about which to start next when it echoed, sounding as though it came from his door. A mixture of startled, worried, and confused, Roderich stood from the piano and made his way to the door.<p>His violet eyes widened in shock when he saw Gilbert crumpled at the bottom of his door, eyes wide but dulled, unseeing. Worry taking precedence now, Roderich slid his arms around Gilbert's chest and slowly but surely pulled the heavier mecha into his apartment, closing and locking the door firmly behind him as soon as he could.

"Gilbert!" He hissed frantically, shaking the other slightly. "Gilbert, wake up! This isn't funny! Gilbert!" Unsure, Roderich pulled off the black beanie on his head, his fingers moving towards where he thought the switch would be to turn him on; he pulled his hand back with a surprised cry when he realized the other was far too hot to touch at all, his head practically burning.

Gilbert's eyes lit up, and he sat up so quickly Roderich didn't have time to react.

"Welcome home Master!" He said, a shake passing through him. "I didn't!" Gilbert snarled suddenly. "I waited outside that door for ten minutes before you said that they were dismissed- - -" His tone changed, still snarling, but now with a slight pleading tone, "And the mecha would do anything- - -literally, anything, for its master. I'm doing what I believe would make you happier." The mecha shook again. "Let's go on a date!"

Confused, Roderich moved away from Gilbert and all but bolted for the phone. He nearly dropped it in his haste to dial the company Elizabeta ran, and it took him several tries to get the number right before someone on the other end picked up.

"It's fucking late and everyone's asleep." Came a tired, hissed voice. "I'm fucking pissed cause those assholes did something to my brother, which means that fucking potato bastard has him at this very fucking instant, and now you've woken me up. What the fuck do you want, bastard?"

"Ah!" Roderich had an eye on Gilbert, who had taken to repeating the same things in a quick succession; as a result, his reply was hurried and distracted. "Uh, um. Elizabeta. Or Kiku. One of them- - -quickly!"

"Who the hell are you?" The voice snapped; there was a semi-quiet argument, though the annoyed cursing echoed over the line, a few seconds of silence, and then another, slightly more accented voice came on.

"Is this Roderich?

"Kiku, please!" The pianist repeated, rocking back onto the balls of his feet. Gilbert was still talking, though now it sounded more like he was having a conversation with himself, or maybe Kiku- - -he was talking almost animatedly about the sky and the grass, and how the sunlight reflected off the concrete; his words slurred together and he spoke so fast Roderich could barely understand him. "Or Elizabeta, really, either one will do!" The silence this time was much more prolonged, broken only by the sound of repetitive steps: someone running.

"Moshi-moshi, Honda Kiku."

"What did you guys do to him?" Roderich asked frantically, turning away from Gilbert to steady his thoughts a bit.

"Gilbert-san is with you then?" Kiku asked hurriedly. Over the phone, a screeching sound echoed, a distinct questioning voice ignored in favor of listening to Roderich's answer.

"Yes- - -no- - -kind of!" Roderich exploded. "Should I bring him there, or are you coming here?" There was a deliberate pause, a couple of clicking sounds, then Kiku spoke.

"I shall be on my way, Roderich-san." The Asian mechanic said finally. "Keep the door unlocked. I will be there shortly." There was no time for Roderich to form a response; almost the second Kiku stopped speaking, there was an abrupt click and a dial tone.

Roderich paced furiously, hand running through his hair every few seconds, as he waited for Kiku to arrive. Gilbert, it seemed, had given up on waiting for the mechanic. He had gone eerily silent when Roderich placed the phone on the cradle, then fallen backward against the sofa, sprawled out and unmoving. That had been at least ten minutes ago; the longest ten minutes Roderich had ever felt in his life.

Kiku burst into the apartment suddenly, dark gaze focused solely on the sprawled mecha on the couch in front of the door. A messenger bag hung off his shoulder, keys and key ring in one hand. Roderich jumped violently, almost falling into the television, at the sound of the door flying open and banging into the wall behind it. Kiku ignored his outburst, falling to his knees in front of the sofa and digging around in his messenger bag.

"My deepest apologies, Gilbert-san." He murmured quietly; he found what he was looking for, pulling out a USB drive and a cable. Plugging one end into the small, black USB, Kiku unraveled the cable and pushed aside Gilbert's silvery hair. He picked up one of the ears and pressed against it, sliding the silver part forward a bit and revealing a port for the cable to plug into. Without hesitating, Kiku pushed the opposite end into the port.

Gilbert reacted automatically; his eyes, which had shut when he fell back, opened, though they remained a dulled crimson. He moved slowly, sluggishly, pushing himself into a sitting position and tilting his head from side to side as if he was cracking his neck. His other ear swiveled back and forth slowly, seeming like a loading signal while numbers flashed across his dull eyes.

"What are you doing?" Roderich asked quietly, interrupting the quietness that had settled around the apartment.

"I kept a copy of his memory system on the computer. It's standard procedure for any mecha as it goes through an update or any modifications." The mechanic explained. Gilbert's eyes brightened momentarily, looking almost normal, and then dulled again. His ear stopped swiveling around, his eyes slid shut, and he fell back once more against the sofa. Kiku seemed pleased with this reaction, reaching over and unplugging the cable from Gilbert's ear. "His system is rebooting itself now."

"What happens when that finishes?" Kiku sighed heavily, standing up and placing the cable and USB in his bag again. Shoving the strap over his shoulder, he gave an apologetic smile to Roderich.

"He should be fine." He reassured the brunette teacher. "He'll come to sometime tomorrow, probably about the time you should be getting off of work, and he'll have everything working properly." Roderich sighed heavily, his shoulders dropping and his body relaxing. Kiku seemed amused at the reaction, crossing over and placing his hand on Roderich's shoulder in assurance. "I apologize on behalf of Mecha Love Corp. We hadn't realized how useful he was, and as such caused an unnecessary amount of problems."

"It's fine." Roderich said tiredly, rubbing his eyes and smiling unconsciously.

"As a token of our apology, Elizabeta and I have decided to allow you to own another mecha of your choosing to do as you please with him." Roderich groaned, causing Kiku to smile. "Perhaps we should discuss that matter another time."

"Yes, please." Roderich walked with the Asian mechanic to the door, giving the smaller male a grateful smile. "Thank you very much for your help." With another nod, Kiku left; Roderich closed the door, leaning against it tiredly and rubbing his head.

After a moment of debate, he walked back to the sofa, sitting gingerly beside Gilbert's head. The mecha's head had cooled considerably, and Roderich felt a calming smile cross his face as he slowly threaded his fingers through the short silver strands of hair. Gilbert didn't move, not that Roderich had expected him to, but the action soothed the brunette musician. Combined with the silence in the apartment, Roderich felt his eyes slip shut as well, his back slouching against the back of the soda in a manner he would have normally condoned as he slipped into sleep.

His fingers were still tangled in Gilbert's silver hair, unconsciously stroking the mecha's head as the musician dreamed. 


End file.
